mole
Definition from Wiktionary, the free dictionary
Contents
English[edit]
Etymology 1[edit]
From Middle English mole, mool, from Old English māl, mǣl (“a mole, spot, mark, blemish”), from Proto-Germanic *mailą (“spot, wrinkle”), from Proto-Indo-European *mel-, *melw- (“dark, dirty”), from Proto-Indo-European *mey-, *my- (“to soil, sully”). Cognate with Scots mail (“spot, stain”), German dialectal Meil (“spot, stain, blemish”), Gothic [script?] (mail, “spot, blemish”).
Pronunciation[edit]
- (UK) IPA(key): /məʊl/
- (Estuary English) IPA(key): /mɒʊl/
- (US) IPA(key): /mol/, /moʊl/
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Audio (US) (file) - Rhymes: -əʊl
Noun[edit]
mole (plural moles)
Synonyms[edit]
Related terms[edit]
Translations[edit]
dark spot on the skin
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Etymology 2[edit]
From Middle English mol, molde, molle, from Old English *mol, from Proto-Germanic *mulaz, *mulhaz (“mole, salamander”), from Proto-Indo-European *molg-, *molk- (“slug, salamander”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)melw- (“to grind, crush, beat”). Cognate with North Frisian mull (“mole”), Eastern Frisian molle (“mole”), Dutch mol (“mole”), Low German Mol, Mul (“mole”), German Molch (“salamander, newt”), Old Russian смолжь (smolzh, “snail”), Czech mlž (“clam”).
Derivation as an abbreviation of Middle English molewarpe, a variation of moldewarpe, moldwerp (“mole”) in Middle English is unexplained and probably unlikely due to the simultaneous occurrence of both words. See mouldwarp.
Alternative forms[edit]
Pronunciation[edit]
- (UK) IPA(key): /məʊl/
- (Estuary English) IPA(key): /mɒʊl/
- (US) IPA(key): /mol/, /moʊl/
-
Audio (US) (file) - Rhymes: -əʊl
Noun[edit]
mole (plural moles)
- Any of several small, burrowing insectivores of the family Talpidae.
- Any of the burrowing rodents also called mole rats.
- (espionage) An internal spy, a person who involves himself or herself with an enemy organisation, especially an intelligence or governmental organisation, to determine and betray its secrets from within.
- A kind of self-propelled excavator used to form underground drains, or to clear underground pipelines
Derived terms[edit]
Synonyms[edit]
Translations[edit]
burrowing insectivore
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mole rat — see mole rat
internal spy
Etymology 3[edit]
From moll (from Moll, an archaic nickname for Mary), influenced by the spelling of the word mole ("an internal spy"), and due to /mɒl/ and /məʊl/ merging as [moʊl] in the Australian accent.
Pronunciation[edit]
Noun[edit]
mole (plural moles)
Synonyms[edit]
Translations[edit]
translations to be checked
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Etymology 4[edit]
French môle or Latin mōles (“mass, heap, rock”).
Pronunciation[edit]
Noun[edit]
mole (plural moles)
- (nautical) A massive structure, usually of stone, used as a pier, breakwater or junction between places separated by water.[1]
- 1847 — George A. Fisk, A pastor's memorial of the holy land
- [Alexander the Great] then conceived the stupendous idea of constructing a mole, which should at once connect [Tyre] with the main land; and this was actually accomplished by driving piles and pouring in incalculable quantities of soil and fragments of rock; and it is generally believed, partly on the authority of ancient authors, that the whole ruins of Old Tyre were absorbed in this vast enterprize, and buried in the depths of the sea [...]
- 1983 — Archibald Lyall, Arthur Norman Brangham, The companion guide to the south of France
- [about Saint-Tropez] Yachts and fishing boats fill the little square of water, which is surrounded on two sides by quays, on the third by a small ship-repairing yard and on the fourth by the mole where the fishing boats moor and the nets are spread out to dry.
- 1847 — George A. Fisk, A pastor's memorial of the holy land
- (rare) A haven or harbour, protected with such a breakwater.
Translations[edit]
massive structure used as a pier or breakwater
Etymology 5[edit]
Alternative forms[edit]
- mol (dated)
Pronunciation[edit]
Noun[edit]
mole (plural moles)
- (chemistry, physics) In the International System of Units, the base unit of amount of substance; the amount of substance of a system which contains as many elementary entities as there are atoms in 0.012 kg of carbon-12. Symbol: mol. The number of atoms is known as Avogadro’s number
Synonyms[edit]
Translations[edit]
unit of amount
Etymology 6[edit]
Pronunciation[edit]
Noun[edit]
mole (plural moles)
- A hemorrhagic mass of tissue in the uterus caused by a dead ovum.
Translations[edit]
hemorrhagic mass of tissue in the uterus
Etymology 7[edit]
From Spanish, from Nahuatl mōlli (“sauce; stew; something ground”).
Pronunciation[edit]
Noun[edit]
mole (plural moles)
- One of several spicy sauces typical of the cuisine of Mexico and neighboring Central America, especially the sauce which contains chocolate and which is used in cooking main dishes, not desserts.[2]
Translations[edit]
References[edit]
Anagrams[edit]
Danish[edit]
Pronunciation[edit]
Noun[edit]
mole c (singular definite molen, plural indefinite moler)
Inflection[edit]
Inflection of mole
Esperanto[edit]
Adverb[edit]
mole
Related terms[edit]
- mola (“soft”)
Antonyms[edit]
French[edit]
Pronunciation[edit]
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Audio (Paris) (file)
Noun[edit]
mole f (plural moles)
Italian[edit]
Noun[edit]
mole f (plural moli)
Synonyms[edit]
Related terms[edit]
Anagrams[edit]
Latin[edit]
Etymology 1[edit]
Verb[edit]
mole
- second-person singular present active imperative of molō
Etymology 2[edit]
Noun[edit]
mōle f
- ablative singular of mōles
Portuguese[edit]
Pronunciation[edit]
Etymology 1[edit]
From Old Portuguese mole, from Latin mollis, earlier *molduis, from Proto-Indo-European *(h₂)moldus (“soft, weak”).
Adjective[edit]
mole m, f (plural moles; comparable)
Inflection[edit]
Inflection of the Portuguese adjective mole
| singular | plural | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| masculine | feminine | masculine | feminine | |
| positive | mole | moles | ||
| comparative | mais mole | mais moles | ||
| superlative | o mais mole molíssimo |
a mais mole molíssima |
os mais moles molíssimos |
as mais moles molíssimas |
Etymology 2[edit]
Noun[edit]
mole
Etymology 3[edit]
Noun[edit]
mole m (plural moles)
- (Portugal) Alternative form of mol.
Spanish[edit]
Etymology 1[edit]
From Latin mollis; cognate with muelle
Adjective[edit]
mole m, f (plural moles)
Synonyms[edit]
Etymology 2[edit]
From Latin moles
Noun[edit]
mole f (plural moles)
Etymology 3[edit]
From Classical Nahuatl mōlli "sauce, something ground".
Noun[edit]
mole m (plural moles)
- (Mexico) mole, a type of stew.
Etymology 4[edit]
Verb[edit]
mole
- Formal second-person singular (usted) imperative form of molar.
- First-person singular (yo) present subjunctive form of molar.
- Formal second-person singular (usted) present subjunctive form of molar.
- Third-person singular (él, ella, also used with usted?) present subjunctive form of molar.
Categories:
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- en:Espionage
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