mothball
to put into storage or reserve; inactivate.
inactive; unused; stored away: a mothball fleet.
Idioms about mothball
in mothballs,
in disuse or in storage, especially with reference to standby equipment.
(of ideas) dismissed as unworthy of further deliberation.
Origin of mothball
1Words Nearby mothball
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use mothball in a sentence
Now the organization that oversees the ratings is mothballing its consumer-facing portion, and expediting an independent review of the system’s data and methodology.
The controversial way fashion brands gauge sustainability is being suspended | Amanda Shendruk | June 29, 2022 | QuartzAirlines mothballed planes, furloughed workers, and incentivized people to leave with early retirement and buyouts packages.
Epic delays and flight cancellations: How the US airline industry can get back up to speed | Teresa Carr/Undark | January 12, 2022 | Popular-ScienceAfter five years in storage, apparently without mothballs, the college’s jerseys were rife with holes and most of the pads were literally coming apart at the seams.
These ‘experts’ once said women couldn’t play football. Boy were they wrong. | Britni de la Cretaz and Lyndsey D’Arcangelo | November 15, 2021 | Popular-ScienceNASA lost access to low-Earth orbit for nearly a decade after the retirement of the Space Shuttle, and if the ISS is mothballed, both the space agency and the space industry will lose out.
British Dictionary definitions for mothball
/ (ˈmɒθˌbɔːl) /
Also called: camphor ball a small ball of camphor or naphthalene used to repel clothes moths in stored clothing, blankets, etc
put in mothballs to postpone work on (a project, activity, etc)
to prepare (a ship, aircraft, etc) for a long period of storage by sealing all openings with plastic to prevent corrosion
to take (a factory, plant, etc) out of operation but maintain it so that it can be used in the future
to postpone work on (a project, activity, etc)
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
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