mount

¹ American  

[mount] / maʊnt /

verb (used with object)

mounts, present (3rd person singular) mounted, past participle, past mounting present participle

1. to go up; climb; ascend.

   to mount stairs.

   Synonyms:

   scale

   Antonyms:

   descend

2. to get up on (a platform, a horse, etc.).

3. to set or place at an elevation.

   to mount a house on stilts.

4. to furnish with a horse or other animal for riding.

5. to set or place (a person) on horseback.

6. to organize, as an army.

7. to prepare and launch, as an attack or a campaign.

8. to raise or put into position for use, as a gun.

9. (of a fortress or warship) to have or carry (guns) in position for use.

10. to go or put on guard, as a sentry or watch.

11. to attach to or fix on or in a support, backing, setting, etc..

    to mount a photograph; to mount a diamond in a ring.

12. to arrange for display.

    to mount a museum exhibit.

13. to provide (a play, musical comedy, opera, etc.) with scenery, costumes, and other equipment for production.

14. to prepare (an animal body or skeleton) as a specimen.

15. (of a male animal) to climb upon (a female) for copulation.

16. Microscopy.

    1. to prepare (a slide) for microscopic investigation.

    2. to prepare (a sample) for examination by a microscope, as by placing it on a slide.

---

verb (used without object)

mounts, present (3rd person singular) mounted, past participle, past mounting present participle

1. to increase in amount or intensity (often followed byup ).

   The cost of all those small purchases mounts up.

2. to get up on the back of a horse or other animal for riding.

3. to rise or go to a higher position, level, degree, etc.; ascend.

   Synonyms:

   soar

4. to get up on something, as a platform.

noun

1. the act or a manner of mounting.

2. a horse, other animal, or sometimes a vehicle, as a bicycle, used, provided, or available for riding.

   Synonyms:

   palfrey, charger, steed, horse

3. an act or occasion of riding a horse, especially in a race.

4. a support, backing, setting, or the like, on or in which something is, or is to be, mounted or fixed.

5. an ornamental metal piece applied to a piece of wooden furniture.

6. Microscopy. a prepared slide.

7. a distinctive metal feature on a sheath or scabbard, as a locket or chape.

8. Philately. hinge.

9. Printing. a wooden or metal block to which a plate is secured for printing.

mount ² American  

[mount] / maʊnt /

noun

Chiefly Literary.

1. a mountain: often used as part of a placename.

---

mount ¹ British  

/ maʊnt /

verb

1. to go up (a hill, stairs, etc); climb

2. to get up on (a horse, a platform, etc)

3. io increase; accumulate

   excitement mounted

4. (tr) to fix onto a backing, setting, or support

   to mount a photograph

   to mount a slide

5. (tr) to provide with a horse for riding, or to place on a horse

6. (of male animals) to climb onto (a female animal) for copulation

7. (tr) to prepare (a play, musical comedy, etc) for production

8. (tr) to plan and organize (a compaign, an exhibition, etc)

9. (tr) military to prepare or launch (an operation)

   the Allies mounted an offensive

10. (tr) to prepare (a skeleton, dead animal, etc) for exhibition as a specimen

11. (tr) to place or carry (weapons) in such a position that they can be fired

12. See guard

---

noun

1. a backing, setting, or support onto which something is fixed

2. the act or manner of mounting

3. a horse for riding

4. a slide used in microscopy

5. philately

   1. a small transparent pocket in an album for a postage stamp

   2. another word for hinge

mount ² British  

/ maʊnt /

noun

1. a mountain or hill: used in literature and (when cap.) in proper names

   Mount Everest

2. (in palmistry) any of the seven cushions of flesh on the palm of the hand

---

Synonym Usage

See climb.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• mounter
  noun
• mountable
  adjective
• mountless
  adjective
• unmountable
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• mounting
  present
• mounted
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• mount
  simple
• mounts
  simple
• have mounted
  perfect
• has mounted
  perfect
• am mounting
  progressive
• are mounting
  progressive
• is mounting
  progressive
• have been mounting
  perfect progressive
• has been mounting
  perfect progressive

Past

• mounted
  simple
• had mounted
  perfect
• was mounting
  progressive
• were mounting
  progressive
• had been mounting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will mount
  simple
• will have mounted
  perfect
• will be mounting
  progressive
• will have been mounting
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of mount¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English mounten, from Old French munter, monter, Vulgar Latin (unattested) montāre, derivative of Latin mont- (stem of mōns ) mount ²

Origin of mount²

First recorded before 900; Middle English mount(e), mont, munt(e), Old English munt “mount, hill, mountain,” from Latin mont- (inflectional stem of mōns ) “mountain, hill”

Explanation

To mount is to climb up something, like a ladder, or get on the back of something, like a horse. You can also mount something on another object, like a camera on a tripod or a sticker on a notebook. The word mountain can help you remember that one way to mount is to climb. You can mount a mountain or a flight of stairs. You can also mount a pony by getting on its back or a bicycle by climbing onto it. The oldest meaning of mount is, in fact, "mountain," from the Old French word mont, which has its root in the Latin montem for “mountain."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

mount mounts mounted mounting

And deaths have continued to mount in 2026.

From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026

As calls mount for him to end his fast, the Delhi High Court has ordered the government to monitor Wangchuck's health and provide treatment if needed.

From BBC ● Jul. 16, 2026

Paramount, now down 30% year-to-date as debt and regulatory worries about the Warner Bros. deal mount, has lagged behind media peers since agreeing to its last deal with smaller production company Skydance.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 13, 2026

When these creatine-deficient dendritic cells were grown alongside T cells in laboratory experiments, the T cells multiplied less and produced fewer signaling molecules needed to mount an effective anti-cancer response.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 8, 2026

They were in no mood to mount the assault.

From "Boots on the Ground: America's War in Vietnam" by Elizabeth Partridge

Discovery to as late as next June as David Ellison’s media company mounts its defense to the antitrust challenge brought by California Atty.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026

In her bracing debut, “Catch the Devil,” Pamela Colloff mounts a convincing case for his innocence.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026

Then she mounts a free show in Central Park, something he can’t buy out from under her, that breaks attendance records.

From Salon ● May 29, 2026

But with each accurate prediction, the weight of expectation mounts on Klement, who works as a strategist at investment bank Panmure Liberum.

From BBC ● May 26, 2026

One by one they mounted and turned their mounts toward home.

From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin

Public frustration has mounted following a series of exam irregularities, including the leak of a medical entrance examination paper and problems with an online marking system for high school students.

From Barron's ● Jul. 24, 2026

Rucci mounted a political challenge, backing a candidate for the utility’s board; his pick lost to a longtime incumbent in June.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026

The South Americans should have added to their advantage before the green-jerseyed West Germans mounted a comeback.

From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026

About the size of a cookie, each array contains eight quartz corner cube prisms mounted inside a dome shaped aluminum frame.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 14, 2026

She pushes me down the bright white hallway, lined with doorways and drawn curtains and hand sanitizer dispensers mounted on the walls.

From "The Sea in Winter" by Christine Day

Shipping companies have suspended services to Ukraine's Black Sea ports following mounting Russian attacks on the coast.

From Barron's ● Jul. 24, 2026

The preparations come despite concerns in Washington about America’s endgame and the mounting cost of the war.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026

When it did come, in the 117th minute and with desperation mounting, Messi fired off target.

From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026

The union said that despite repeated demands to improve workplace conditions -- including mounting protest phrases on trucks -- the company had "ultimately ignored partners' demands, instead unilaterally introducing even more burdensome promotional events".

From Barron's ● Jul. 19, 2026

It was the sound of panic itself, mounting and straining toward the extinction they all knew, individually, to be theirs.

From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan

Related Words

• build
• escalate
• expand
• heighten
• intensify
• rise