moldy
Americanadjective
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overgrown or covered with mold.
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musty, as from decay or age.
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Informal. old-fashioned; outmoded.
moldy ideas about higher education.
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of moldy
Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400; see origin at mold 2, -y 1
Explanation
Things that have gotten damp and started to smell musty can be described as moldy. You can also use this word for things that are actually growing a fungus on them, like your bag of moldy bread. Mold is a particular type of fungus, often greenish or gray in color. Things become moldy from being stored in dark, damp places or in the case of some food, from not being refrigerated. If you wait months to clean out your locker and throw away your old lunch bags, you might find mold growing on bread crusts, yogurt, or containers of leftover ravioli. Ditch those moldy remnants!
Vocabulary lists containing moldy
Shiloh
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"Frankenstein Makes a Sandwich"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Mr. Caldwell said that it had been easy to persuade inmates to participate in the strike because of the poor conditions in the prison: Moldy bathrooms, congested spaces and a dangerous lack of security.
From New York Times • Sep. 28, 2022
Before long, Aisha is dreaming about much more: Moldy specters rooted in West African folklore invade her sleep, as do troublingly beautiful visions of the vast ocean that separates her from her son.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 30, 2022
Moldy grain, Peltier noted, will not store well, especially as temperatures warm up in the spring.
From Reuters • Sep. 21, 2016
Culkin is making the rounds promoting his appearance in Adam Green's Aladdin, a bizarro DIY interpretation of the classic Arabian Nights tale spearheaded by the former Moldy Peaches guitarist-turned-cult favorite auteur.
From The Verge • Apr. 8, 2016
Moldy bread and dog biscuits fairly green with mold, though condemned by Greely, were seized by the famished men, and devoured ravenously without a thought of their unwholesomeness.
From American Merchant Ships and Sailors by Abbot, Willis J. (Willis John)
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
