mot

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English

Etymology 1

From French mot. Doublet of motto.

Pronunciation

  • (UK) IPA(key): /məʊ/
    • (file)
  • Rhymes: -əʊ

Noun

mot (plural mots)

  1. A witty remark; a witticism; a bon mot.
    • 1859, unknown author, “Literary Adventure. Life of Douglas Jerrold”, in North British Review:
      Here and there turns up a [] savage mot.
    • 1970, John Glassco, Memoirs of Montparnasse, New York, published 2007, page 32:
      ‘He comes from Montreal, in Canada.’ ‘Why?’ she said, repeating Dr Johnson's mot with a forced sneer.
  2. (obsolete) A word or a motto; a device.
  3. (obsolete) A note or brief strain on a bugle.

Etymology 2

Probably from Dutch mot (woman). See also mort (woman) and moth (girlfriend).

Pronunciation

Noun

mot (plural mots)

  1. (UK, Ireland, slang) A woman; a wife.
    • 1789, G. Parker, “The Sandman's Wedding”, in Farmer, John Stephen, editor, Musa Pedestris, published 1896:
      Come wed, my dear, and let's agree, / Then of the booze-ken you'll be free; / No sneer from cully, mot, or froe / Dare then reproach my Bess for Joe; / For he's the kiddy rum and queer, / That all St. Giles's boys do fear.
    • 1829 July, Vidocq, Eugène François with Maginn, William, transl., “Noctes Ambrosiana [En roulant de vergne en vergne]”, in Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, number 45, translation of En roulant de vergne en vergne, page 133:
      And we shall caper a-heel-and-toeing, / A Newgate hornpipe some fine day; / With the mots, their ogles throwing, / Tol lol, &c. / And old Cotton humming his pray.
  2. (UK, Ireland, slang) A prostitute.
  3. (UK, Ireland, slang) A landlady.
    • 1851, Henry Mayhew, London Labour and the London Poor, volume 1, page 217:
      After some altercation with the "mot" of the "ken" (mistress of the lodging-house) about the cleanliness of a knife or fork, my new acquaintance began to arrange "ground," &c., for the night's work.

Anagrams

Albanian

Etymology

From Proto-Albanian *māti (time), from Proto-Indo-European *méh₁tis (measurement), deverbative of *meh₁- (to measure); compare Old English mǣþ (measure), Lithuanian mẽtas (time), Ancient Greek μῆτις (mêtis, plan). Sense shift from ‘time’ to ‘weather, year, era’ influenced by Latin tempus (time, weather) (compare Romanian timp, French temps).

Noun

mot m (plural mote, definite moti, definite plural motet)

  1. weather
    Synonym: qëro (archaic)
  2. year
  3. era, times (uncountable)

Declension

Derived terms

Compounds

Related terms

Adverb

mot

  1. next year

References

  1. ^ Vladimir Orel, Albanian Etymological Dictionary (Leiden: Brill, 1998), 274–5.

Catalan

Etymology

From Late Latin muttum (sound), from muttire (mutter, make a mu-noise), of onomatopoeic origin. Compare French mot.

Pronunciation

Noun

mot m (plural mots)

  1. word
    Synonym: paraula

Derived terms

Further reading

Crimean Tatar

Noun

mot

  1. fashion
    Şimdi pek mot emiş ağarğan saçlar
    (please add an English translation of this usage example)
    Ah men şu motluqtan uzaq olaydım.
    (please add an English translation of this usage example)

Dutch

Pronunciation

Etymology 1

From Middle Dutch motte. Cognate to English moth, German Motte.

Noun

mot f (plural motten, diminutive motje n)

  1. butterfly-like insect: moth (usually nocturnal insect of the order Lepidoptera)
    Hyponyms: nachtvlinder, uil
Derived terms
Descendants
  • Negerhollands: mot
  • Papiamentu: mot (dated)

Etymology 2

An onomatopoeia.

Noun

mot f (plural motten, diminutive motje n)

  1. a slap, a blow, a hit (physical aggression with hands or fists)
  2. (by extension) a quarrel, tiff

Etymology 3

From Middle Low German mutte.

Noun

mot f (plural motten, diminutive motje n)

  1. a female pig; a sow
    Synonym: zeug
  2. (by extension) a lewd woman
Derived terms

Etymology 4

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Noun

mot f (plural motten, diminutive motje n)

  1. light rain; drizzle
Related terms

French

Etymology

Inherited from Late Latin muttum (sound), from muttīre (mutter, make a mu-noise), of onomatopoeic origin. Has almost entirely replaced parole in Modern French, perhaps because of its brevity. Compare Catalan mot.

Pronunciation

Noun

mot m (plural mots)

  1. word
    Synonym: parole
    • 1903, Louise-Victorine Ackermann, Pensées d'une solitaire, page 43:
      Le poète est bien plus un évocateur de sentiments et d’images qu’un arrangeur de rimes et de mots.
      The poet is rather more an evoker of feelings and images than an arranger of rhymes and words.
  2. note, (short) message
    Synonyms: message, note
  3. answer to an enigma

Derived terms

Further reading

Anagrams

Middle English

Etymology 1

From Old English mot.

Alternative forms

Pronunciation

Noun

mot (plural motes)

  1. speck, particle
Descendants
References

Etymology 2

From Old English mōt, from Proto-West Germanic *mōtu, from Proto-Germanic *mōtō (tax, toll).

Pronunciation

Noun

mot (plural motes or moteez)

  1. (Early Middle English, rare) tax
Descendants
References

Etymology 3

From Old English *mōt, ġemōt (meeting), from Proto-Germanic *mōtą.

Alternative forms

Noun

mot (plural mots)

  1. meeting; assembly
  2. disputation, debate, argument
  3. A company of people.
Descendants
References

Etymology 4

Verb

mot

  1. first/third-person singular present indicative of moten (to have to)

Middle French

Noun

mot m (plural mots)

  1. word

Descendants

Norwegian Bokmål

Pronunciation

Etymology 1

Noun

mot n (definite singular motet, uncountable)

  1. courage

Etymology 2

From Old Norse mót.

Noun

mot n (definite singular motet, indefinite plural mot, definite plural mota or motene)

  1. a meeting
Derived terms

Etymology 3

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Preposition

mot

  1. to, towards
    Kjør mot byen.Drive towards town.
  2. against, from
    En paraply skjermer deg mot regnet!An umbrella protects you from the rain!
  3. against, versus
    Det var et kappløp mot tiden.It was a race against time.
Derived terms

References

Norwegian Nynorsk

Pronunciation

Etymology 1

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Noun

mot n (definite singular motet, uncountable)

  1. courage
Derived terms

Etymology 2

From Old Norse mót.

Noun

mot n (definite singular motet, indefinite plural mot, definite plural mota)

  1. a meeting
Derived terms

Etymology 3

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Preposition

mot

  1. to, towards
    Han kom mot dei.He came towards them.
  2. against, from; for
    Har de noko som verkar mot tett nase?Do you have anything that works for a stuffy nose?
  3. against, versus
    Kven skal me spela mot?Who shall we play against?
Derived terms

References

Occitan

Alternative forms

Etymology

From Late Latin muttum.

Pronunciation

Noun

mot m (plural mots)

  1. word

Old English

Pronunciation

Etymology 1

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Verb

mōt

  1. first/third-person singular present of motan

Etymology 2

From Proto-West Germanic *mōtu, from Proto-Germanic *mōtō (tax, toll).

Noun

mōt f

  1. toll
  2. tax
Declension
Descendants

See also

Old French

Etymology 1

From Late Latin muttum.

Noun

mot oblique singularm (oblique plural moz or motz, nominative singular moz or motz, nominative plural mot)

  1. word
    Synonym: (more common) parole
Descendants

Etymology 2

See molt

Adjective

mot m (oblique and nominative feminine singular mote)

  1. Alternative form of molt

Adverb

mot

  1. Alternative form of molt

Old Occitan

Pronunciation

Etymology 1

From Latin multus.

Alternative forms

Adverb

mot

  1. much; a lot

Etymology 2

From Late Latin muttum.

Noun

mot m (oblique plural motz, nominative singular motz, nominative plural mot)

  1. word

References

Swedish

Etymology

From Old Norse mót, from Proto-Germanic *mōtą, *gamōtą.

Pronunciation

Noun

mot n

  1. (chiefly west Sweden) A point where two or more objects meet (e.g. the joint of two bones).
  2. (chiefly west Sweden) A slip road or flyover.
  3. (chiefly west Sweden) An interchange; a large junction where two or more roads meet.
  4. (Ostrobothnia) A passing place.
    Synonym: mötesplats

Declension

Declension of mot 
Singular Plural
Indefinite Definite Indefinite Definite
Nominative mot motet mot moten
Genitive mots motets mots motens

Derived terms

  • ledamot (body part; board member)

Preposition

mot

  1. to, towards
    Kör mot stan.Drive towards the town.
  2. against
    Det där är mot lagen!That’s against the law!
  3. versus

Derived terms

Further reading

Anagrams

Tocharian B

Noun

mot

  1. alcohol
  2. alcoholic beverage

Volapük

Noun

mot (nominative plural mots)

  1. mother
    Synonym: jifat
    Hypernym: pal
    Coordinate term: fat

Declension

Derived terms

See also

Walloon

Pronunciation

Noun

mot m (plural mots)

  1. word

Derived terms

Yola

Etymology 1

Perhaps from Middle English but, from Old English būtan.

Preposition

mot

  1. but
    • 1867, “A YOLA ZONG”, in SONGS, ETC. IN THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY, number 5, page 86:
      Mot w'all aar boust, hi soon was ee-teight
      But with all their bravado they were soon taught
    • 1867, “A YOLA ZONG”, in SONGS, ETC. IN THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY, number 11, page 88:
      Wode zar; mot, all arkagh var ee barnaugh-blowe,
      Would serve; but, all eager for the barnagh-stroke,
    • 1867, “CASTEALE CUDDE'S LAMENTATION”, in SONGS, ETC. IN THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY, number 2, page 102:
      Aar was nodhing ee-left mot a heade,
      There was nothing left but the head,
    • 1867, “ABOUT AN OLD SOW GOING TO BE KILLED”, in SONGS, ETC. IN THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY, number 1, page 106:
      Mot earch oan to aar die. Ich mosth kotch a bat.
      But every one to his day. I must catch the bat.
    • 1867, “ABOUT AN OLD SOW GOING TO BE KILLED”, in SONGS, ETC. IN THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY, number 2, page 106:
      Vear'd nodhing mot Portheare. Na skeine e'er ee-waare.
      I feared nothing but Porter. No skein I ever wore.

Etymology 2

From Middle English mot, from Old English mōt, from Proto-West Germanic *mōtu, from Proto-Germanic *mōtō.

Noun

mot

  1. asking (a charge on goods)

Etymology 3

Noun

mot

  1. Alternative form of mothe

Etymology 4

Perhaps from Middle English moten, from Old English mōtian.

Verb

mot

  1. to ask
    • 1867, “A YOLA ZONG”, in SONGS, ETC. IN THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY, number 2, page 84:
      Well, gosp, c'hull be zeid; mot thee fartoo, an fade;
      Well, gossip, it shall be told; you ask what ails me, and for what;

References

  • Jacob Poole (1867), William Barnes, editor, A Glossary, With some Pieces of Verse, of the old Dialect of the English Colony in the Baronies of Forth and Bargy, County of Wexford, Ireland, London: J. Russell Smith, page 57