mold

[ mohld ]

/ moʊld /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR mold ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a hollow form or matrix for giving a particular shape to something in a molten or plastic state.

the shape created or imparted to a thing by a mold.

something formed in or on a mold: a mold of jelly.

a frame on which something is formed or made.

shape or form.

a prototype, example, or precursor.

a distinctive nature, character, or type: a person of a simple mold.

Shipbuilding.

a three-dimensional pattern used to shape a plate after it has been softened by heating.
a template for a frame.

Architecture.

a molding.
a group of moldings.

verb (used with object)

to work into a required shape or form; shape.

to shape or form in or on a mold.

Metallurgy. to form a mold of or from, in order to make a casting.

to produce by or as if by shaping material; form.

to have influence in determining or forming: to mold the character of a child.

to ornament with moldings.

Also especially British, mould.

Origin of mold

1175–1225; (noun) Middle English molde < Old French modle < Latin modulus module; (v.) Middle English, derivative of the noun

OTHER WORDS FROM mold

mold·a·ble, mould·a·ble, adjective mold·a·bil·i·ty, mould·a·bil·i·ty, noun

Words nearby mold

molar volume, molarity, molars, molasse, molasses, mold, mold loft, mold wash, moldau, moldavia, moldavian

Definition for mold (2 of 3)

mold ²

[ mohld ]

/ moʊld /

noun

a growth of minute fungi forming on vegetable or animal matter, commonly as a downy or furry coating, and associated with decay or dampness.

any of the fungi that produce such a growth.

verb (used with or without object)

to become or cause to become overgrown or covered with mold.

Also especially British, mould.

Origin of mold

1150–1200; late Middle English mowlde, apparently noun use of variant of earlier mowled, past participle of moulen, mawlen to grow moldy, cognate with dialectal Danish mugle

Definition for mold (3 of 3)

mold ³

[ mohld ]

/ moʊld /

noun

loose, friable earth, especially when rich in organic matter and favorable to the growth of plants.

British Dialect. ground; earth.

Also especially British, mould.

Origin of mold

before 900; Middle English, Old English molde earth, dust, ground; cognate with Gothic mulda dust; akin to meal², mill¹

Example sentences from the Web for mold

Headmasters are in a unique position of power to mold the minds of impressionable young students.

Headmasters Behaving Badly |Emily Shire |November 29, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
One can think of a few American commentators who fit into that mold.

Digital Doublethink: Playing Truth or Dare with Putin, Assad and ISIS |Christopher Dickey, Anna Nemtsova |November 16, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
National Republicans see her in the mold of moderates like Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, but Democrats disagree.

Koch Brothers Bail Out GOP Senate Hopeful in Oregon |Ben Jacobs |August 25, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
On an issue like Syria, Cruz remains in the Kirkpatrick mold.

How Ted Cruz Trolls Obama’s Foreign Policy |Eli Lake |July 29, 2014 |DAILY BEAST

Square-jawed and muscular—in snapshots he looks like Channing Tatum in camo—Gibbs seemed to fit the mold of the ideal soldier.

‘Kill Team’: The Documentary the Army Doesn’t Want You to See |Andrew Romano |July 26, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
Children will like it poured into oiled cup-cake tins or any other mold.

Candy-Making Revolutionized |Mary Elizabeth Hall
Pour into a buttered mold, which place in a saucepan, which you have filled with water the height of your mold.

French Dishes for American Tables |Pierre Caron
There it is forged into a square shape after coming from the mold in an octagonal form.

America's Munitions 1917-1918 |Benedict Crowell
Pour into a wet cloth and roll it up like a pudding, twisting the ends of the cloth to mold it.

The Whitehouse Cookbook (1887) |Mrs. F.L. Gillette
He kept the loading-tools he had used as a boy: a capper for shot-gun shells, a mold for lead bullets.

Main Street |Sinclair Lewis

British Dictionary definitions for mold

mold

/ (məʊld) /

noun, verb

the US spelling of mould 1

Scientific definitions for mold

mold

[ mōld ]

Any of various fungi that often form a fuzzy growth (called a mycelium) on the surface of organic matter. Some molds cause food to spoil, but others are beneficial, such as those used to make certain cheeses and those from which antibiotics like penicillin are developed. The molds do not form a distinct phylogenetic grouping but belong to various phyla including the ascomycetes and the zygomycetes. See also slime mold.

Idioms and Phrases with mold

mold

see cast in the same mold.

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

mold