definitions

moil

[ moil ]
/ mɔɪl /
|
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR moil ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used without object)

to work hard; drudge.
to whirl or churn ceaselessly; twist; eddy.

verb (used with object)

Archaic. to wet or smear.

noun

RELATED WORDS

strive, travail, strain, work, drive, grind, plod, sweat, struggle, back, drudge, toil, slave, endeavor, tend, cultivate, tug, fag

Nearby words

mohwa, mohács, moi, moidore, moiety, moil, moira, moirai, moire, moiré, moiré effect

Origin of moil

1350–1400; Middle English moillen to make or get wet and muddy < Middle French moillier < Vulgar Latin *molliāre, derivative of Latin mollis soft
Related formsmoil·er, nounmoil·ing·ly, adverbun·moiled, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for moil

British Dictionary definitions for moil

moil

/ (mɔɪl) archaic, or dialect /

verb

to moisten or soil or become moist, soiled, etc
(intr) to toil or drudge (esp in the phrase toil and moil)

noun

toil; drudgery
confusion; turmoil
Derived Formsmoiler, noun

Word Origin for moil

C14 (to moisten; later: to work hard in unpleasantly wet conditions) from Old French moillier, ultimately from Latin mollis soft
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012