mist

¹

[mist]

noun

1. a cloudlike aggregation of minute globules of water suspended in the atmosphere at or near the earth's surface, reducing visibility to a lesser degree than fog.

2. a cloud of particles resembling this.

   She sprayed a mist of perfume onto her handkerchief.

3. something that dims, obscures, or blurs.

   the mist of ignorance.

4. a haze before the eyes that dims the vision.

   a mist of tears.

5. a suspension of a liquid in a gas.

6. a drink of liquor served over cracked ice.

7. a fine spray produced by a vaporizer to add moisture to the air for breathing.

verb (used without object)

1. to become misty.

2. to rain in very fine drops; drizzle (usually used impersonally with it as subject).

   It was misting when they went out for lunch.

verb (used with object)

1. to make misty.

2. to spray (plants) with a finely diffused jet of water, as a means of replacing lost moisture.

mist.

²

abbreviation

1. (in prescriptions) a mixture.

mist

/ mɪst /

noun

1. a thin fog resulting from condensation in the air near the earth's surface

2. meteorol such an atmospheric condition with a horizontal visibility of 1–2 kilometres

3. a fine spray of any liquid, such as that produced by an aerosol container

4. chem a colloidal suspension of a liquid in a gas

5. condensed water vapour on a surface that blurs the surface

6. something that causes haziness or lack of clarity, such as a film of tears

verb

1. to cover or be covered with or as if with mist

mist

1. A mass of fine droplets of water in the atmosphere near or in contact with the Earth. Mist reduces visibility to not less than 1 km (0.62 mi).

2. Compare fog

Other Word Forms

• mistless adjective
• demist verb (used with object)
• undermist noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of mist¹

First recorded before 900; (noun) Middle English, Old English; cognate with Dutch, Low German, Swedish mist; akin to Greek omíchlē “fog,” Russian mgla “mist,” Sanskrit megha “cloud”; (verb) Middle English misten, Old English mistian, derivative of the noun

Origin of mist²

From the Latin word mistūra

Word History and Origins

Origin of mist¹

Old English; related to Middle Dutch, Swedish mist, Greek omikhlē fog

Synonym Study

See cloud.

Example Sentences

When the weapon hits the window, the glass explodes into pieces so fine and small that it looks like mist.

Read more on Literature

They were briefly blinded as the mist swirled all around, but soon they popped through to the other side.

Read more on Literature

These included partial restrictions on fossil fuel-powered transport and water trucks spraying mist to clear particulate matter from the air.

Read more on Barron's

There was a sudden spray of mist, and everyone turned to see a pod of whales arriving.

Read more on Literature

His consciousness arises as if out of a mist.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• cloud 
• dew 
• drizzle 
• fog 
• moisture 
• rain 
• smog 
• steam 

When To Use

What else does mist mean?

Content warning: this article references illicit drugs.A mist is, literally speaking, a cloud of fine liquid droplets, but in slang it can variously refer to drugs and the experience of being on them. Mist can also be an alternative spelling or misspelling of missed.