mothball
[ mawth-bawl, moth- ]
/ ˈmɔθˌbɔl, ˈmɒθ- /
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noun
verb (used with object)
to put into storage or reserve; inactivate.
adjective
inactive; unused; stored away: a mothball fleet.
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Idioms for mothball
- in disuse or in storage, especially with reference to standby equipment.
- (of ideas) dismissed as unworthy of further deliberation.
in mothballs,
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
Example sentences from the Web for mothball
Standing naked in front of a half-length mirror in a Maine hotel room so dingy and dated it should have come with complimentary mothballs, I marveled at what I had become over the past 2,200 miles.
Did Thru-Hiking the Appalachian Trail Ruin My Body?|Grayson Haver Currin|January 25, 2021|Outside OnlineIf China does somehow achieve carbon neutrality—whether by, say, mothballing its many coal plants or installing pricey carbon capture systems in them—it would have a huge global impact.
If China plans to go carbon neutral by 2060, why is it building so many coal plants?|James Temple|September 23, 2020|MIT Technology Review
British Dictionary definitions for mothball
mothball
/ (ˈmɒθˌbɔːl) /
noun
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)
verb (tr)
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
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