Moorish

[ moor-ish ]

adjective
  1. of or relating to the Moors, a Muslim people of NW Africa.

  2. in the style of the Moors, as architecture or decoration.

Origin of Moorish

1
First recorded in 1400–50, Moorish is from the late Middle English word morys.See Moor, -ish1

Words Nearby Moorish

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use Moorish in a sentence

  • Upon a little Moorish table beside a deep, low settee lay a complete opium-smoking outfit.

    Dope | Sax Rohmer
  • She clasped both hands to her breast, and the light shone upon the rubies set in the old Moorish bracelets that she was wearing.

    A Butterfly on the Wheel | Cyril Arthur Edward Ranger Gull
  • Christophe followed the young officer to the grand staircase, not without a glance of ecstasy at the semi-Moorish tower.

    Catherine de' Medici | Honore de Balzac
  • The Mediterranean Sea in those days was infested by pirates sailing from the Moorish ports.

  • In a short time nearly two hundred American sailors were working as slaves in the Moorish states.

British Dictionary definitions for Moorish

Moorish

/ (ˈmʊərɪʃ, ˈmɔː-) /


adjective
  1. of or relating to the Moors

  2. denoting the style of architecture used in Spain from the 13th to 16th century, characterized by the horseshoe arch

  • Also: Morisco, Moresco

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