mote 
mot, prot. iiuixtf = MI). D. oioFtrii = MLG. 
inn/I'll. !,<!. llliitlll =O||<;. lliil'i.ril, Mllli. Ill iii - 
zen, G. muxnen = Goth, motan, gnmutan (pres. 
mot, pret. <//*/< ), bo obliged; relations doubt- 
ful. The word remains imly in the pret. (and 
now also pres.) ;.>/, and in the archaic subj. 
imiti'.] 1. May; might: chiefly in the sub- 
junctive: as, so mote it be. [Archaic.] 2f. 
Must. Sec in nut*. 
Ylt mot he doon bothe right to poore and ryche, 
Al be that hire estaat be nat yllche. 
Chaucer, Good Women, 1. 388. 
At last their wayes so fell, that they mote part. 
Spenser, V. (J., III. Iii. 62. 
mote'^t, " and v. An obsolete form of moot*. 
mote 4 t, n. An obsolete form of moat. 
mote r> t, " [ME., < L. motus, motion, < movere, 
pp.;no<u,move: see mure; of. motion.] Motion. 
The residue is the mene mote for the same day and the 
same houre. Chaucer, Astrolabe, II. 44. 
mote-bellt (mot'bel), . A bell used to summon 
people to a moot or court. 
moteil (mo'ted), a. [< mote* + -ed 2 .] Contain- 
ing motes ; abounding in motes. 
And the old swallow-haunted barns 
Brown-gabled, long, and full of seams 
Through which the mnii-,1 sunlight streams. 
WhiUier, Witch's Daughter. 
moteless(m6t'les), a. [< ME. moteles; < mote* 
+ -leas.} 1. Free of motes. 
In this moteless air were placed test-tubes. 
The American, IV. 298. 
2. Spotless; without blemish. 
That moteles meyny may neuer remwe, 
Fro that maskelez mayster neuer-the-les. 
Alliterative Poems (ed. Morris), 1. 898. 
moteling (mot'ling), n. [< mote* + -ling*.] A 
little mote ; something very small. 
A cloud of Moatlings hums 
Above our heads. 
Sylvester, tr. of Du Bartas's Weeks, li., The Vocation. 
Motella (mg-tel'ii), n. [NL., < F. motelle, the 
eel-pout (of. miistelle, the whistlefish) ; < L. 
mustela, a fish, the eel-pout : see Afustela.] A 
genus of gadoid fishes ; the rocklings. They are 
of small size, with elongate body, small scales, two dorsal 
tins, and one anal. There are several species, of various 
seas, as M. mustela. 
moteret, ('. A Middle English form of mutter. 
Prompt. Parv., p. 30. 
motet (mg-tef), n. [Also motett, mottett; = F. 
motet = Sp. Pg. motete, < It. mottetto (ML. mo- 
tetum), a motet, dim. of motto, a word, saying: 
see mot 2 , motto.] In mime: (a) A vocal com- 
position in somewhat strict polyphonic style, 
having a Biblical or similar prose text, and in- 
tended to be sung in a church service. Origi. 
nally the motet was designed as a contrast to the plain- 
song of the remainder of the service, and probably it 
oftn possessed something of the graceful Intricacy of 
the madrigal. The earliest motets date from about 1300. 
The use of an Instrumental accompaniment is usually 
limited, and often avoided altogether, (h) Any vocal 
work in harmony intended for use in a church 
service ; an anthem, strictly speaking, a motet is in 
medieval style, and an anthem in modern style ; but the 
distinction is often Ignored. 
motettist (mo-tet'ist), n. [< motet, motett, + 
-ist.] A composer or singer of motets. 
motetus (mo-te'tus), n. [ML., also motetum.'] 
In medieval music, a middle voice or voice-part ; 
a mean. 
moth 1 (mdth), n. [< ME. mothe, moththe, < 
AS. moththe = MD. motto, D. mot = MLG. LG. 
muttc = MHG. mottc, matte, G. motte = Icel. 
motti, a moth, = Sw. mott, a moth ; also E. dial. 
mought, < ME. moughte, mowghte, moughthe, < 
AS. mohthe. Perhaps akin to mad 2 , made 2 , 
whence maddock, mawk, a maggot. The forms 
are somewhat discordant ; perhaps two or more 
orig. diff. words are involved.] 1. A nocturnal 
or crepuscular lepidopterous insect; a member of 
the order Lepidoptera and suborder Heterocera. 
Moths resemble butterflies, but lor the most part fly by 
night instead of by day, and their antennae, though exhibit- 
ing great diversity of size and shape, are not rhopalocerous 
or clubbed at the end like those of butterflies. There are 
many families and very numerous genera and species. 
Aside from numberless specific names, moths are distin- 
guished by the leading families under English names. 
Hawk-moths are Sphiitfridce and related families ; butterfly 
hawk-moths, l'raniidce( various popnlarnames),ygtniida; 
clear-winged hawk-moths, .ftffenidcc ; swift-moths, llepia- 
lidce; lappet-moths or silkworm-moths, Bmnbycida; tiger- 
moths, Arctiidff; lackey-moths, Lithonidce; rustic moths, 
Soetuidte; geomctrid moths, Geometridie ; meal-moths, 
PyraKilce; leaf -rolling moths, Torlricida; ermine-moths, 
1'poiwuieutidif; leaf-mining moths, Tineida; plume-moths, 
Alucitidat (or Ptfrophoridte), The tineids include the va- 
rious small ninths injurious to carpets and other woolen 
fabrics. The smaller moths, of several families, are often 
colleeth uly -Irsiu'iiateil Micrnlepidojitrrti. Various small 
white mealy moths are MttM miller*. See the above 
3871 
names, and cuU under rphinz, Bombyx, Cidaria, Kaclei, 
Carpocapsa, and Ayrotu. 
An vtiredy reue thl residue shal ipene, 
That inenye innththe was maUter ynne, In a myntc-whlle. 
Piert Plowman (C), xlli. 216. 
2. Any larva that destroys woolen fabrics. 3. 
Figuratively, one who or that which gradually 
and silently eats, consumes, or wastes anything. 
If I lie left behind, 
A moth of peace, and he go to the war. 
fihak., Othello, I. a 257. 
Bee-hawk moth. Seefce-Aau*. Buffalo moth, a popu- 
lar misnomer of the dennestld beetle Anthrenut tcrophu- 
lariaK, derived from the brown hairy humped larva. See 
cuts under Anthrenus and carpet-beetle. Death's-head, 
deltoid, emperor, harlequin moth. See the qualify- 
ing words. Grape-berry moth. See grapei . Hebrew- 
character moth. See Hebrew, Honeycomb moth. 
See honeycomb. 
moth'-'t, An obsolete variant of motel. 
Featvaso [It.), a little stlcke, a f ease-straw, a tooth-plcke, 
a moth, a little beame. Florio. 
A moth It Is to trouble the mind's eye. 
Skat., Hamlet, L 1. 112. 
moth-blight (m&th'blit), w. A homopterous in- 
sect of the genus Aleurodes or family AUurodi- 
Atx: so called from their resemblance to moths 
and the injury they do to plants. They are re- 
lated to the coccids or scale-insects, and to the 
aphids or plant-lice. 
moth-cicada (mdth'si-ka'dS), n. A homopter- 
ous insect of the family Fleitida-; a flatid. 
moth-eat (moth'et), v. t. To eat or prey upon, 
as a moth eats a garment: only in the past 
participle. 
Rulne and neglect have so moatheaten her (the town of 
Fettipore] as at this day she lies prostrate, and become the 
object of danger and misery. 
Sir T. Herbert, Travels in Africa, p. 61. 
mothed (mdtht), a. [<moth + -ed 2 .] Moth- 
eaten. [Kare.j 
Shredded perfume, like a cloud 
From closet long to quiet vowed, 
With mothed and dropping arras hung. 
Broirning, Paracelsus. 
mothent (mdth'n), a. [< moth + -en 2 .] Full of 
moths; moth-eaten. 
We rake not up olde, mouldie, and mothen parchmentes 
to seeke our progen Hours' names. 
Fvlke against Allen (1580), p. 125. 
mother 1 (muTH'er), n. [With th for orig. d, as 
also in father; < ME. moder (gen. moder), < AS. 
modor, moder, moddor (gen. modor, dat. meder) = 
OS. modar, muodcr = OFries. moder = D. moeder, 
moer = MLQ. moder, LG. moder, mor = OHG. 
MHG. muoter, G. tter = Icel. modhir = Sw. 
Dan. moder (not found in Goth., where the word 
for 'mother' was aithei and for 'father' atta) = 
Olr. mathir, Ir. Gael, mathair = L. mater (matr-) 
(>It. 8p. Pg. madre = Pr. maire = OF. mere, F. 
mere) = Gr. ftirrrip, Doric parr/p = OBulg. unit! = 
Buss, mati = Lith. mote = Pol. matka (with 
dim. term, -to) = OPers. mate, Pers. mdder = 
Skt. in a tn (stem water), mother; a general In- 
do-Eur. word (though absent in Gothic and mod. 
W.), with appar. suffix -tar, of agent, from a 
root usually taken to be / ma, Skt. ma, mea- 
sure or make ; but this is conjectural. Cf. mat- 
ter, from the same ult. root.] 1. A woman in 
relation to her child ; female parent : also used 
of female animals in relation to their offspring. 
Thus brought merlyn the messagers of the kynge to 
his moder place. Merlin (E. E. T. S.), 1. SO. 
Many was the modur son 
To the kyrk with him can fare. 
Itnliiu Hood and the .Von* (Child's Ballads, V. 5). 
Ladies ! thou, Paris, mov'st my laughter, 
They 're deities ev'ry mother's daughter. 
Cotton, Burlesque upon Burlesque, p. 258. (Danes.) 
2. That which has given birth to anything; 
source of anything; generatrix. 
Alas, poor country ! . . . It cannot 
Be called our mother, but our grave. 
Shot., Macbeth, iv. 8. 166. 
Athens, the eye of Greece, mother of arts 
And eloquence. Milton, P. II. , Ir. 240. 
3. A familiar appellation or term of address of 
an old or elderly woman. 
But, mother, I did not come to hear Mr. Rochester's for- 
tune ; I came to hear my own. 
Charlotte Bronte', Jane Eyre, xix. 
4. A title sometimes given to a"n abbess, and 
to other women holding an important position 
in religious or semi-religious institutions. 
Why should these ladies stay so long? They must come 
this way ; I know the queen employs 'em not ; for the rev- 
erend mother sent me word they would all be for the gar- 
den. Beau, and Fl., Philaster, 11. 2. 
5. A hysterical malady. 
O, how this mother swells up toward my heart ! 
Shot., Lear, U. 4. 56. 
mother-in-law 
The mother Is a pestilent, wilful, troublesome sickness. 
MUU(%lbolHM ill. 1. 
6f. Tin- thickest plate, forming the body or 
principal part, of tne astrolabe. 
The moder of thin Astrclable Is the thikkeste plate, 
perced with a large bole, that reueyvytli in hir wumbo 
the thynne plates compowned for diverse clymatz, and 
thi riet shape!) in manere of a net or of a wcbbe of a loppe. 
Chaucer, Astrolabe, L 3. 
Artificial mother. See brooder. - Congregation of the 
Mother of Ood. See congregation.- Every mother's 
son, all, without exception. [Colloq.] Mother Carey's 
chicken. See cAioim i . Mother Carey's goose. See 
goose. Mother church. See church. -- Mother of eela, 
a lycodold fish, Zoarce* anffuillaru, more commonly known 
as eel-pout. Mother of God, a litli- iiiven to the Virgin 
Mary. Mother of herrings, the alike. |Prov. Eng.] 
Mother of the maids, the chief of the ladies of honor at 
the Enl Uh court. Mother of the mawklns. See mal- 
kin. Mother's mark, a birth-mark ; a strawberry-mark, 
mole, or other ntevus. 
mother 1 (muTH'er). v. t. [< mother*, n.] To 
be or act as a mother to ; treat in a motherly 
fashion. 
The queen . . . would have mothered another body's 
child. llweell, Hist. Eng.,p. 170. 
I mothered all his daughters when 
Their mother's life cut short. 
Uarper'i Mag., LXXVIIL 829. 
mother 2 (muTH'er), . [Altered, by confusion 
with mother*, from *mudder,( MD. ntodder, mud, 
dregs, lees, D. moer = MLG. moder, moer, dregs, 
lees, LG. moder (> G. moder, also mutter) = Dan. 
Sw. mudder, mud, mold; akin to mud, q. v.] 
1. Dregs; lees. 
Near a Nymph with an Urn, that divides the High-way, 
And into a Puddle throws Mother of Tea. 
Prior, Down-Hall, at. 15. 
2. A stringy, mucilaginous substance which 
forms in vinegar during the acetous fermenta- 
tion, and the presence of which sets up and 
hastens this kind of fermentation. It is produced 
by a plant, Mycoderma aceti, the germs of which, like those 
of the yeast-plant, exist in the atmosphere. 
Unhappily the bit of mother from Swift's vinegar-barrel 
has had strength enough to sour all the rest [of Carlyle's 
characteristics]. Lowell, Study Windows, p. 124. 
mother 2 (muTH'er), v. i. [< mother?, n.] To 
become concreted, as the thick matter of li- 
quors ; become mothery. 
They olnt their [sheep's] naked limbs with mothrrrd oil. 
Dryden, tr. of Virgil's Oeorglcs, iii. 688. 
mother 3 (muTH'er), n. Same as mouther. 
A sling for a mother, a bow for a boy, 
A whip for a carter. 
Tueser, Five Hundred Points of Good Husbandry. (Latham.) 
mother-cask (muTH'er-kask), n. The cask in 
which acetous fermentation is carried on in the 
manufacture of vinegar. 
mother-cell (muTH'er-sel), n. See cell. 
mother-cloves (muTH'er-klovz), n. See clore*. 
mother-country (muTH'er-kun'tri), n. 1. A 
country which Las sent colonies to other coun- 
tries: used in speaking of it in relation to 
its colonies. 2. One's native country. 3. A 
country as the mother or producer of anything. 
motherhood (muTH'er-hud), n. [ME. *moder- 
hod, moderhede; < mother* + -hood.] The state 
of being a mother. 
Mother-Hnbbard (muTH'er-hub'ard), H. A 
loose full gown worn by women: so named 
from its general resemblance to that considered 
characteristic of "Mother Hubbard" in the 
rimes of "Mother Goose." 
One morning ... he opened his door and beheld the 
vision of a woman going towards the breakfast-room In 
a robe de nuit, but which turned out to be one of the 
Mother Uubbardt which have had a certain celebrity as 
street dresses in some parts of the West. 
C. D. Warner, Their Pilgrimage, p. 61. 
mothering (muTH'er-ing), n. [< mother* + 
-ing*.]ji rural custom of visiting one's pa- 
rents and giving them presents on Mid-Lent 
Sunday : supposed to be derived from the cus- 
tom in former times of visiting the mother 
church on that day. Also called midlenting. 
[Eng.] 
Ill to thee a simnel bring 
'Gainst thou go'st a mothering. 
Herrict, To Dianeme. 
mother-in-law (muTH'er-in-la'),n. 1. The 
mother of one's husband or wife. 2. A step- 
mother. [Now only prov. Eng.] 
To violate so gentle a request of her predecessor, was an 
ill foregoing of a mothrr-in-lav>'t harsh nature. 
Middleton, Anything for a Quiet Life, L 1. 
3. An English drink composed of equal propor- 
tions of old strong ale and bitter ale : so called 
in jocose allusion to the qualifications 'old' and 
' bitter. ' The name has also been recently applied in the 
United States to a similar mixture. 
