adjective
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slightly damp or wet
-
saturated with or suggestive of moisture
Related Words
See damp.
Other Word Forms
- moistful adjective
- moistless adjective
- moistly adverb
- moistness noun
- overmoist adjective
- semimoist adjective
Etymology
Origin of moist
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English moiste, from Middle French; connected with Latin mūcidus “musty, moldy”; mucid
Explanation
Moist things feel damp when you touch them — they're just a little bit wet. You might want to bring a blanket to sit on for a picnic, especially if it rained yesterday and the grass is still moist. Your houseplants are happiest when their soil is moist, and cake is most delicious if it's a little moist, not dry and crumbly. You can also describe your friend's eyes full of tears as moist, or the air on a densely foggy morning as moist. For some reason, the word moist frequently shows up on lists of "least favorite words," which makes more sense when you know its Latin root, muscidus — "moldy" or "slimy."
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.
Glycerin, a thick liquid that keeps toothpaste smooth and moist, can be a petroleum-based compound.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 21, 2026
The goal texture here is precise: moist but not wet.
From Salon • Mar. 11, 2026
According to Svenning, these trees often have thick leaves, dense wood, and long lifespans, and they are especially common in moist tropical and subtropical forests.
From Science Daily • Feb. 9, 2026
On one hand an Atlantic low pressure system will repeatedly attempt to move in from the west, bringing relatively mild, moist air and unsettled conditions.
From BBC • Jan. 16, 2026
All of its internal life exists within three paper-thin layers of tissue—the phloem, xylem, and cambium—just beneath the bark, which together form a moist sleeve around the dead heartwood.
From "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson
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.
