mold
1 (mōld)
[Middle English molde, from Old French modle, molle, from Latin modulus diminutive of modus, measure.]
noun
- A hollow form or matrix for shaping a fluid or plastic substance.
- A frame or model around or on which something is formed or shaped.
- Something that is made in or shaped on a mold.
- The shape or pattern of a mold.
- General shape or form: the oval mold of her face.
- Distinctive character or type: a leader in the mold of her predecessors.
- A fixed or restrictive pattern or form: a method of scientific investigation that broke the mold and led to a new discovery.
- Architecture See molding
verb: mold·ed, mold·ing, molds.
transitive verb
- To shape in or on a mold.
- To form into a particular shape; give shape to.
- To guide or determine the growth or development of; influence: a teacher who helps to mold the minds of his students.
- To fit closely by following the contours of.
- To make a mold of or from (molten metal, for example) before casting.
- To ornament with moldings.
intransitive verb
- To be shaped in or as if in a mold: shoes that gradually molded to my feet.
derivatives
- mold́a·ble
- adjective
- mold́er
- noun
mold
2 (mōld)
[Middle English moulde probably from past participle of moulen, to grow moldy, from Old Norse mygla.]
noun
- Any of various fungi that often cause disintegration of organic matter.
- The growth of such fungi.
intransitive verb: mold·ed, mold·ing, molds.
- To become moldy.
mold
3 (mōld)
[Middle English, from Old English molde.]
noun
- Loose friable soil, rich in humus and fit for planting.
- Chiefly British
- The earth; the ground.
- The earth of the grave.
- Archaic Earth as the substance of the human body.
mold·ing
(mōĺdĭng)
noun
- The act or process of molding.
- Something that is molded.
- An embellishment in strip form, made of wood or other structural material, that is used to decorate or finish a surface, such as the wall of a room or building or the surface of a door or piece of furniture. Also called Also called mold1
