mothy

American

[maw-thee, moth-ee] / ˈmɔ θi, ˈmɒθ i /

adjective

mothier, mothiest

containing moths.
moth-eaten.

mothy British

/ ˈmɒθɪ /

adjective

ragged; moth-eaten
containing moths; full of moths

"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

Etymology

Origin of mothy

First recorded in 1590–1600; moth + -y ¹

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.

See Terence Stamp declaim from beneath a mothy blanket, then disappear in a puff of smoke!

From New York Times

Beg pardon?” says he, gettin’ twisted up on that mothy gag.

From Project Gutenberg

Our hero walked into his apartment, which certainly had a very mothy and mouldy appearance.

From Project Gutenberg

There were several articles of wearing apparel in this box, all of a mothy and mouldy character.

From Project Gutenberg

The air of prosperity with which he was invested saved him from being seized immediately by one of the bawling salesmen and dragged into the mothy interior of the shop.

From Project Gutenberg

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023