to cast off or shed the exoskeleton, hair, outer skin, horns, or feathers at certain intervals, prior to replacement of the castoff parts by a new growth
said of reptiles, birds, insects, etc.
verb transitive
2.
to replace by molting
noun
3.
the act or process of molting
4.
the parts so shed
Derived forms
molter (ˈmolter)
noun
Word origin
ME mouten (with unhistoric -l- after UNRESOLVED CROSS REF, in which the letter was orig. silent) < OE (be)mutian, to exchange < L mutare, to change: see mutate
Examples of 'molt' in a sentence
molt
One of his hind legs was slightly smaller than the others, having regenerated after being lost in a molt.