Dictionary.com

mood

1
[ mood ]
/ mud /
Save This Word!
See synonyms for: mood / moods on Thesaurus.com
noun
a state or quality of feeling at a particular time: What's the boss' mood today?
a distinctive emotional quality or character: The mood of the music was almost funereal.
a prevailing emotional tone or general attitude: the country's mood.
a frame of mind disposed or receptive, as to some activity or thing: I'm not in the mood to see a movie.
a state of sullenness, gloom, or bad temper.
QUIZ
CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?
There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?
Question 1 of 7
Which sentence is correct?
His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.
His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.
TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of mood

1
First recorded before 900; Middle English mod, mode “mind” (as opposed to body), Old English mƍd “mind, spirit; courage”; cognate with German Mut, Gothic mƍths “courage,” Old Norse mƍthr “anger”

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH mood

mode, mood

Words nearby mood

moo, moob, moobs, MOOC, mooch, mood, mood-altering, mood board, mood disorder, Moodle, mood music

Other definitions for mood (2 of 2)

mood2
[ mood ]
/ mud /
noun
Grammar.
  1. a set of categories for which the verb is inflected in many languages, and that is typically used to indicate the syntactic relation of the clause in which the verb occurs to other clauses in the sentence, or the attitude of the speaker toward what they are saying, such as certainty or uncertainty, wish or command, emphasis or hesitancy.
  2. a set of syntactic devices in some languages that is similar to this set in function or meaning, involving the use of auxiliary words, such as can, may, might.
  3. any of the categories of these sets: the Latin indicative, imperative, and subjunctive moods.
Logic. a classification of categorical syllogisms by the use of three letters that name, respectively, the major premise, the minor premise, and the conclusion.
Also called mode .

Origin of mood

2
First recorded in 1525–35; special use of mood1 by influence of mode1
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Words related to mood

air, atmosphere, attitude, aura, character, color, condition, desire, disposition, emotion, feeling, frame of mind, humor, inclination, mind, personality, response, scene, spirit, temperament

How to use mood in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for mood (1 of 2)

mood1
/ (muːd) /
noun
a temporary state of mind or tempera cheerful mood
a sullen or gloomy state of mind, esp when temporaryshe's in a mood
a prevailing atmosphere or feeling
in the mood in a favourable state of mind (for something or to do something)

Word Origin for mood

Old English mƍd mind, feeling; compare Old Norse mƍthr grief, wrath

British Dictionary definitions for mood (2 of 2)

mood2
/ (muːd) /
noun
grammar a category of the verb or verbal inflections that expresses semantic and grammatical differences, including such forms as the indicative, subjunctive, and imperative
logic one of the possible arrangements of the syllogism, classified solely by whether the component propositions are universal or particular and affirmative or negativeCompare figure (def. 18)
Ancient name: mode

Word Origin for mood

C16: from mood 1, influenced in meaning by mode
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

Other Idioms and Phrases with mood

mood

see in a bad mood; in the mood.

The American HeritageŸ Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
FEEDBACK