| 释义 |
mote
I. \ˈmōt\ verbal auxiliary
(past moste \ˈmōst\)
Etymology: Middle English moten, from Old English mōtan to be allowed to, be able to, have to — more at must
archaic : may, might
II. \ˈmōt, usu -ōd.+V\ noun
(-s)
Etymology: Middle English mot, moot, from Old English mot; akin to Middle Dutch & Frisian mot earth, sand, Norwegian mutt speck
1.
a. : a small particle (as of floating dust) : speck
< motes danced in the shafts of sunlight — Margaret Kennedy >
b. archaic : a bit of foreign matter in food or drink
c. obsolete : something extremely minute : trifle, jot, tittle
2. dialect Britain : straw, stalk
3.
a. : a small undeveloped seed or fragment that has not been removed in cotton ginning
b. : a black spot in yarn or cloth due to such an impurity
•
- mote in the eye
III. transitive verb
(-ed/-ing/-s)
: to remove motes from (cotton)
IV. noun
(-s)
Etymology: Middle English, from Old French mote, motte mound, hillock, mote — more at motte
1. or mote hill : height, hill; especially : an elevated place used as a fortification
2. : barrow, tumulus |