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Synonyms

mould

1 British  
/ məʊld /

noun

  1. a shaped cavity used to give a definite form to fluid or plastic material

  2. a frame on which something may be constructed

  3. something shaped in or made on a mould

  4. shape, form, design, or pattern

  5. specific nature, character, or type

    heroic mould
"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

verb

  1. to make in a mould

  2. to shape or form, as by using a mould

  3. to influence or direct

    to mould opinion

  4. to cling to

    the skirt moulds her figure

  5. metallurgy to make (a material such as sand) into a mould that is used in casting

"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
mould 2 British  
/ məʊld /

noun

  1. a coating or discoloration caused by various saprotrophic fungi that develop in a damp atmosphere on the surface of stored food, fabrics, wallpaper, etc

  2. any of the fungi that causes this growth

"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

verb

  1. to become or cause to become covered with this growth

"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
mould 3 British  
/ məʊld /

noun

  1. loose soil, esp when rich in organic matter

  2. poetic the earth

"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

Other Word Forms

  • mouldability noun
  • mouldable adjective

Etymology

Origin of mould1

C13 (n): changed from Old French modle, from Latin modulus a small measure, module

Origin of mould2

C15: dialect (Northern English) mowlde mouldy, from the past participle of moulen to become mouldy, probably of Scandinavian origin; compare Old Norse mugla mould

Origin of mould3

Old English molde; related to Old High German molta soil, Gothic mulde

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.

They also questioned whether ethanol released through the barrels of whisky could cause the fungus black mould to appear.

From BBC • Mar. 26, 2026

Wall panels and insulation at two new Aberdeen hospital facilities have had to be ripped out because of mould even before the buildings receive their first patients.

From BBC • Mar. 19, 2026

Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin after mould accidentally contaminated a laboratory dish and killed surrounding bacteria.

From Science Daily • Mar. 14, 2026

All that remained was to put rules down on paper, develop special helmets and invent a machine to mould the snowballs.

From Barron's • Feb. 22, 2026

You have to grow' around them, like tree roots around concrete; you mould yourself through the gaps.

From "The Girl on the Train" by Paula Hawkins

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

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.