MOAT

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

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 Dictionary entry overview: What does moat mean? 

• MOAT (noun)
  The noun MOAT has 1 sense:

1. ditch dug as a fortification and usually filled with water

  Familiarity information: MOAT used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• MOAT (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Ditch dug as a fortification and usually filled with water

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Synonyms:

fosse; moat

Hypernyms ("moat" is a kind of...):

trench (a ditch dug as a fortification having a parapet of the excavated earth)

 Context examples 

But what danger could threaten them here in this strong castle, under the care of famous warriors, with high walls and a broad moat around them?

(The White Company, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

These shoes, it ran, were dug up in the moat of Holdernesse Hall.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

The researchers hypothesize, therefore, that emissions from the flights could settle into the moats and become DBC.

(Antarctic lakes are a repository for ancient soot, NSF)

The 60,000 newly discovered structures include raised highways, urban centers with sidewalks, homes, terraces, industrial-sized agricultural fields, irrigation canals, ceremonial centers, a 30-meter high pyramid, fortresses and moats.

(Hidden Mayan Civilization Revealed in Guatemala Jungle, VOA)

Instantly, Sir What's-his-name recovered himself, pitched the tyrant out of the window, and turned to join the lady, victorious, but with a bump on his brow, found the door locked, tore up the curtains, made a rope ladder, got halfway down when the ladder broke, and he went headfirst into the moat, sixty feet below.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)

A broad moat, a high outer wall turreted at the corners, with a great black keep towering above all—so it lay before them in the moonlight.

(The White Company, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

In addition to being almost completely scoured of ice and snow by high winds, the Dry Valleys are the site of ice-covered lakes, which experience seasonal, temperature-related advances and retreats in their amount of ice cover during the Southern Hemisphere's summer months, sometimes resulting in a temporary moat around the icy surface of the lakes.

(Antarctic lakes are a repository for ancient soot, NSF)

They are on the further side of the moat.

(The White Company, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

In front lay the broad moat, with the moon lying upon its surface, now clear and round, now drawn lengthwise as the breeze stirred the waters.

(The White Company, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)