MOULD

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does mould mean? 

• MOULD (noun)
  The noun MOULD has 8 senses:

1. loose soil rich in organic matter

2. the distinctive form in which a thing is made

3. the process of becoming mildewed

4. a fungus that produces a superficial growth on various kinds of damp or decaying organic matter

5. a dish or dessert that is formed in or on a mold

6. a distinctive nature, character, or type

7. sculpture produced by molding

8. container into which liquid is poured to create a given shape when it hardens

  Familiarity information: MOULD used as a noun is common.

• MOULD (verb)
  The verb MOULD has 3 senses:

1. form in clay, wax, etc

2. form by pouring (e.g., wax or hot metal) into a cast or mold

3. make something, usually for a specific function

  Familiarity information: MOULD used as a verb is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• MOULD (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Loose soil rich in organic matter

Classified under:

Nouns denoting substances

Synonyms:

mold; mould

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

dirt; soil (the part of the earth's surface consisting of humus and disintegrated rock)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "mould"):

leaf mold; leaf mould; leaf soil (soil composed mainly of decaying leaves)

Sense 2

Meaning:

The distinctive form in which a thing is made

Classified under:

Nouns denoting two and three dimensional shapes

Synonyms:

cast; mold; mould; stamp

Context example:

pottery of this cast was found throughout the region

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

solid (a three-dimensional shape)

Sense 3

Meaning:

The process of becoming mildewed

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural processes

Synonyms:

mildew; mold; mould

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

spoilage; spoiling (the process of becoming spoiled)

Sense 4

Meaning:

A fungus that produces a superficial growth on various kinds of damp or decaying organic matter

Classified under:

Nouns denoting plants

Synonyms:

mold; mould

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

fungus (an organism of the kingdom Fungi lacking chlorophyll and feeding on organic matter; ranging from unicellular or multicellular organisms to spore-bearing syncytia)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "mould"):

mucor (any mold of the genus Mucor)

rhizopus (any of various rot causing fungi of the genus Rhizopus)

water mold (parasitic or saprobic organisms living chiefly in fresh water or moist soil)

Derivation:

mouldy (covered with or smelling of mold)

Sense 5

Meaning:

A dish or dessert that is formed in or on a mold

Classified under:

Nouns denoting foods and drinks

Synonyms:

mold; mould

Context example:

a gelatin dessert made in a mold

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

dish (a particular item of prepared food)

afters; dessert; sweet (a dish served as the last course of a meal)

Sense 6

Meaning:

A distinctive nature, character, or type

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

mold; mould

Context example:

a leader in the mold of her predecessors

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

earmark; hallmark; stylemark; trademark (a distinctive characteristic or attribute)

Sense 7

Meaning:

Sculpture produced by molding

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Synonyms:

clay sculpture; modeling; mold; molding; mould; moulding

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

sculpture (a three-dimensional work of plastic art)

Derivation:

mould (form by pouring (e.g., wax or hot metal) into a cast or mold)

mould (form in clay, wax, etc)

Sense 8

Meaning:

Container into which liquid is poured to create a given shape when it hardens

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Synonyms:

cast; mold; mould

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

container (any object that can be used to hold things (especially a large metal boxlike object of standardized dimensions that can be loaded from one form of transport to another))

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "mould"):

matrix (mold used in the production of phonograph records, type, or other relief surface)

pig; pig bed (mold consisting of a bed of sand in which pig iron is cast)

sandbox (mold consisting of a box with sand shaped to mold metal)

form (a mold for setting concrete)

• MOULD (verb)

Present simple: I / you / we / they mould    ... he / she / it moulds   
Past simple: moulded   
Past participle: moulded   
-ing form: moulding   

Sense 1

Meaning:

Form in clay, wax, etc

Classified under:

Verbs of sewing, baking, painting, performing

Synonyms:

model; mold; mould

Context example:

model a head with clay

Hypernyms (to "mould" is one way to...):

forge; form; mold; mould; shape; work (make something, usually for a specific function)

Domain category:

art; artistic creation; artistic production (the creation of beautiful or significant things)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

mould (sculpture produced by molding)

moulding (a preliminary sculpture in wax or clay from which a finished work can be copied)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Form by pouring (e.g., wax or hot metal) into a cast or mold

Classified under:

Verbs of sewing, baking, painting, performing

Synonyms:

cast; mold; mould

Context example:

cast a bronze sculpture

Hypernyms (to "mould" is one way to...):

forge; form; mold; mould; shape; work (make something, usually for a specific function)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "mould"):

press; press out (press from a plastic)

recast; remold; remould (cast again)

sand cast (pour molten metal into a mold of sand)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

mould; moulding (sculpture produced by molding)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Make something, usually for a specific function

Classified under:

Verbs of sewing, baking, painting, performing

Synonyms:

forge; form; mold; mould; shape; work

Context example:

Work the metal into a sword

Hypernyms (to "mould" is one way to...):

create from raw material; create from raw stuff (make from scratch)

Verb group:

process; work; work on (shape, form, or improve a material)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "mould"):

mound (form into a rounded elevation)

puddle (subject to puddling or form by puddling)

hill (form into a hill)

roughcast (shape roughly)

remold; reshape (shape again or shape differently)

sinter (cause (ores or powdery metals) to become a coherent mass by heating without melting)

cast; mold; mould (form by pouring (e.g., wax or hot metal) into a cast or mold)

throw (make on a potter's wheel)

coil; hand-build; handbuild (make without a potter's wheel)

sculpt; sculpture (create by shaping stone or wood or any other hard material)

model; mold; mould (form in clay, wax, etc)

preform (form into a shape resembling the final, desired one)

preform (form or shape beforehand or determine the shape of beforehand)

beat (shape by beating)

stamp (form or cut out with a mold, form, or die)

grind (shape or form by grinding)

machine (turn, shape, mold, or otherwise finish by machinery)

cut out (form and create by cutting out)

layer (make or form a layer)

chip (form by chipping)

swage; upset (form metals with a swage)

carve (form by carving)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s something PP

 Context examples 

This had constituted the clay of him, and it had not been kindly moulded by the world.

(White Fang, by Jack London)

“When he was made, the mould was broke,” said Pete.

(The Call of the Wild, by Jack London)

Above it lie the several minerals in their usual order, and over all is a coat of rich mould, ten or twelve feet deep.

(Gulliver's Travels into several remote nations of the world, by Jonathan Swift)

Curricle-hung, you see; seat, trunk, sword-case, splashing-board, lamps, silver moulding, all you see complete; the iron-work as good as new, or better.

(Northanger Abbey, by Jane Austen)

They were taken from the same mould.

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

When one's body is young, it is very pliable, and hard work will mould it like putty according to the nature of the work.

(Martin Eden, by Jack London)

Mary was too slim for her height, but Blanche was moulded like a Dian.

(Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë)

In Europe, according to the WHO, the risk of asthma increases by around 30-50% if mould is present in a home.

(Smoother walls healthier for lungs, SciDev.Net)

I might then have moulded you so as to have satisfied even my own aspirations.

(Rodney Stone, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

But Caroline Beaufort possessed a mind of an uncommon mould, and her courage rose to support her in her adversity.

(Frankenstein, by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley)