- monologue n. 1a. A dramatic soliloquy. b. A literary composition in the form
of a soliloquy. 2. A continuous series of jokes or comic stories delivered by
one comedian. 3. A long speech made by one person, often monopolizing a
conversation. v. -intr. -tr.
- monomania n. 1. Pathological obsession with one idea or subject. 2. Intent
concentration on or exaggerated enthusiasm for a single subject or idea.
- monophagous adj. Eating only one kind of food. --monophagy n.
- monophobia adj. An abnormal fear of being alone. --monophobic adj.
- monophthong n. 1. A single vowel articulated without change in quality
throughout the course of a syllable, as the vowel of english 'bed'. 2. Two
written vowels representing a single sound, as ‘oa’ in ‘boat’.
- monoplane n. An airplane with only one pair of wings.
- monosodium glutamate n. Abbr. MSG A white crystalline compound, used as a
flavor enhancer in foods.
- monotone n. adj. 1. Characterized by or uttered in a monotone: a monotone
recitation of names. 2. Of or having a single color: a cat with a monotone
coat. 3. also monotonic Math. Designating sequences, the successive members
of which either consistently increase or decrease but do not oscillate in
relative value.
- monotonous adj. 1. Sounded or spoken in an unvarying tone. 2. Tediously
repetitious or lacking in variety.
- monotony n.
- montage n. 1a. A single pictorial composition made by juxtaposing or
superimposing many pictures or designs. b. The art or process of making such a
composition. 2a. A relatively rapid succession of different shots in a movie.
b. The juxtaposition of such successive shots as a cinematic technique. 3. A
composite of closely juxtaposed elements: a montage of voices on an audiotape.
-tr.v.
- mooch Slang v. -tr. 1. To obtain or try to obtain by begging; cadge. 2. To
steal filch. -intr. 1. To get or try to get something free of charge; sponge:
lived by mooching off friends. 2. To wander about aimlessly. 3. To skulk
around; sneak. n. 1. One who begs or cadges; a sponge. 2. A dupe, as in a
confidence game. --moocher n.
- moon-eyed adj. 1. Having the eyes wide-open, as in infatuation, wonder, or
grief: "Didn't she have a hundred moon-eyed ninnies after her in Texas?" 2.
Able to see well at night. 3. Moon-blind.
- moon-faced adj. Having a round face.
- Moonie n. Often Offensive A member of the Unification Church. [After Sun Myung
Moon]
- moonlet n. A small natural or artificial satellite.
- moonlight n. The light reflected from the surface of the moon. -intr.v.
Informal To work at another job, often at night, in addition to one's
full-time job.
- moonshine n. 1. Moonlight. 2. Informal Foolish talk or thought; nonsense. 3.
Illegally distilled whiskey. Also called regionally white lightning. -intr.v.
To distill and sell liquor illegally. --moonshiner n.
- moonstruck also moonstricken adj. 1. Dazed or distracted with romantic
sentiment. 2. Affected by insanity; crazed.
- moony adj. 1. Of or suggestive of the moon or moonlight. 2. Moonlit. 3. Dreamy
in mood or nature; absent-minded.
- moor2 n. A broad area of open land, often high but poorly drained, with
patches of heath and peat bogs.
- Moor n. 1. A member of a Muslim people of mixed Berber and Arab descent, now
living chiefly in northwest Africa. 2. One of the Muslims who invaded Spain in
the 8th century and established a civilization in Andalusia that lasted until
the late 15th century.
- moorhen n. Chiefly British 1. A common, widely distributed species of gallinule.
2. The female red grouse.
- mooring n. 1. The act or an instance of making fast an aircraft or a vessel,
as by a cable or anchor. 2. A place or structure to which a vessel or aircraft
can be moored. 3. Equipment, such as anchors or chains, for holding fast a
vessel or an aircraft. 4. Elements providing stability or security. Often used
in the plural: lost their emotional moorings during the war.
- moot n. 1. Law A hypothetical case argued by law students as an exercise.
-tr.v. 1a. To bring up as a subject for discussion or debate. b. To discuss or
debate. 2. Law To plead or argue (a case) in a moot court. adj. 1. Subject to
debate; arguable: a moot question. 2a. Law Without legal significance, through
having been previously decided or settled. b. Of no practical importance;
irrelevant. [Usage Note] When using moot one should be sure that the context
makes clear which sense is meant.
- mop n. 2. A loosely tangled bunch or mass: a mop of unruly hair.
- mope -intr.v. 1a. To be gloomy or dejected. b. To brood or sulk. 2. To move in
a leisurely or aimless manner; dawdle. n. 1. A person given to gloomy or
dejected moods. 2. mopes Low spirits; the blues. Often used with 'the.' -moper
n. -mopish, mopey adj.
- moped n. A lightweight motorized bicycle that can be pedaled as well as driven
by a low-powered gasoline engine.
- mop-up n. The act or an instance of mopping up; a concluding operation.
- SYNONYMS morale, esprit, esprit de corps
- moral hazard n. A risk to an insurance company resulting from uncertainty
about the honesty of the insured.
- moralism n. 1. A conventional moral maxim or attitude. 2. The act or practice
of moralizing. 3. Often undue concern for morality. -moralist n. -morality n.
- moralize v. -intr. To think about or express moral judgments or reflections.
-tr. 1. To interpret or explain the moral meaning of. 2. To improve the morals
of; reform.
- morass n. 1. An area of low-lying, soggy ground. 2. Something that hinders,
engulfs, or overwhelms: a morass of details.
- moratory adj. Authorizing delay in payment.
- morbid adj. 1a. Of, relating to, or caused by disease; pathological or
diseased. b. Psychologically unhealthy or unwholesome: "He suffered much from
a morbid acuteness of the senses" 2. Characterized by preoccupation with
unwholesome thoughts or feelings: read the account of the murder with a morbid
interest. 3. Gruesome; grisly.
- morbidity n. 1. The quality of being morbid; morbidness. 2. The rate of
incidence of a disease.
- mordacious adj. 1. Giving to biting; biting. 2. Caustic; sarcastic.
- mordant adj. 1a. Bitingly sarcastic: mordant satire. b. Incisive and
trenchant: an inquisitor's mordant questioning. 2. Bitingly painful. 3.
Serving to fix colors in dyeing. n. -tr.v.
- mores pl.n. 1. The accepted traditional customs and usages of a particular
social group. 2. Moral attitudes. 3. Manners; ways.
- moribund adj. 1. Approaching death: about to die. 2. On the verge of becoming
obsolete: moribund customs; a moribund way of life.
- morning-after pill n. A pill containing a drug, especially an estrogen or
estrogen substitute such as diethylstilbestrol, that prevents implantation of
a fertilized ovum and is therefore effective as a contraceptive after sex.
- morning glory n. Any of numerous, usually twining vines, having funnel-shaped,
variously colored flowers that close late in the day.
- morphine n. A bitter crystalline alkaloid, extracted from opium, the soluble
salts of which are used in medicine as an analgesic, a light anesthetic, or a
sedative.
- morsel n. 1. A small piece of food. 2. A tasty delicacy; a tidbit. 3. A small
amount; a piece: a morsel of gossip. 4. One that is delightful and extremely
pleasing.
- mortadella n. A smoked Italian sausage made of ground pork and beef and cubes
of pork fat, flavored with wine and spices.
- mortar n. 1. A vessel in which substances are crushed or ground with a pestle.
2. A machine in which materials are ground and blended or crushed. 3a. A
portable, muzzleloading cannon used to fire shells at low velocities, short
ranges, and high trajectories. b. Any of several similar devices, such as one
that shoots life lines across a stretch of water. 4. Any of various bonding
materials used in masonry, surfacing, and plastering, especially a plastic
mixture of cement or lime, sand, and water that hardens in place and is used
to bind together bricks or stones. -tr.v. 1. To bombard with mortar shells. 2.
To plaster or join with mortar.
- mortify v. -tr. 1. To cause to experience shame, humiliation, or wounded
pride; humiliate. 2. To discipline (one's body and physical appetites) by
self-denial or self-inflicted privation. -intr. 1. To practice ascetic
discipline or self-denial of the body and its appetites. 2. Pathology To
undergo mortification; become gangrenous or necrossed.
- mortise also mortice n. 1. A usually rectangular cavity in a piece of wood,
stone, or other material, prepared to receive a tenon and thus form a joint.
-tr.v. 1. To join or fasten securely, as with a mortise and tenon. 2. To make a
mortise in.
- mosasaur n. Any of various very large extinct aquatic lizards, having modified
limbs that served as paddles for swimming. These lizards, thought to have been
viviparous and carnivorous, may be early ancestors of the modern monitor
lizard.
- mosey -intr.v. Informal 1. To move in a leisurely, relaxed way; saunter:
moseyed over to the club after lunch. 2. To get going; move along.
- mosh v. -intr. To knock against others intentionally while dancing at a rock
concert; slam-dance. -tr. -mosher n.
- mosh pit n. An area in front of a concert stage in which audience members
mosh.
- mossback n. 1. An old shellfish or turtle with a growth of algae on its back.
An old, large, or sluggish fish. 3. An extremely conservative or
old-fashioned person. -mossbacked adj.
