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motley. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
motley, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
motley in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
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English
Etymology
From Middle English motle, from Anglo-Norman motteley (“parti-colored”), from Old English mot (“speck”). Doublet of mote. The English word can be analysed as mottle + -y.
Pronunciation
Adjective
motley (comparative more motley or motlier, superlative most motley or motliest)
- Comprising greatly varied elements, to the point of incongruity.
- Synonyms: heterogeneous, diverse, manifold; see also Thesaurus:heterogeneous
c. 1598–1600 (date written), William Shakespeare, “As You Like It”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies (First Folio), London: Isaac Iaggard, and Ed Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, , lines 906–907:I met a fool i' th' forest, / A motley' fool.
1910, Emerson Hough, chapter II, in The Purchase Price: Or The Cause of Compromise, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC:Carried somehow, somewhither, for some reason, on these surging floods, were these travelers, […]. Even such a boat as the Mount Vernon offered a total deck space so cramped as to leave secrecy or privacy well out of the question, even had the motley and democratic assemblage of passengers been disposed to accord either.
- Having many colours; variegated.
- Synonyms: colorful, prismatic, variegated; see also Thesaurus:multicolored
Derived terms
Related terms
Translations
comprising greatly varied elements
- Armenian: խայտաբղետ (hy) (xaytabġet)
- Bulgarian: разнороден (bg) (raznoroden)
- Dutch: bont (nl), samengeraapt
- Finnish: sekalainen (fi)
- French: hétéroclite (fr)
- German: zusammengewürfelt (de), bunt zusammengeworfen, vielfältig (de), verschiedenartig (de), divers (de), heterogen (de), bunt (de)
- Greek: ετερόκλητος (el) (eteróklitos), ανομοιόμορφος (el) (anomoiómorfos)
- Italian: variegato (it), eterogeneo (it)
- Japanese: ごちゃ混ぜの (gochamaze no), 寄せ集めの (ja) (yoseatsume no)
- Macedonian: разно́роден (raznóroden)
- Persian: آمیخته (fa) (âmixta(e))
- Portuguese: misto (pt)
- Romanian: pestriț (ro), variat (ro), felurit (ro)
- Russian: разношёрстный (ru) (raznošórstnyj) (partly)
- Spanish: heterogéneo (es), variopinto (es), variado (es), abigarrado (es)
- Swedish: brokig (sv)
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having many colours; variegated
- Bashkir: сыбар (sıbar)
- Bulgarian: пъстър (bg) (pǎstǎr), шарен (bg) (šaren)
- Chinese:
- Mandarin: 五顏六色／五颜六色 (zh) (wǔyánliùsè)
- Dutch: bont (nl), geschakeerd (nl)
- Finnish: kirjava (fi)
- French: bigarré (fr)
- German: bunt (de), vielfarbig (de), buntgefleckt, buntgemustert, buntgescheckt, kunterbunt (de), scheckig
- Greek: πολύχρωμος (el) (polýchromos)
- Italian: multicolore (it), variegato (it)
- Japanese: 雑色の (zasshoku no)
- Lithuanian: margas (lt)
- Macedonian: ша́рен (šáren), разно́боен (raznóboen)
- Persian: رنگارنگ (fa) (rangârang)
- Plautdietsch: bunt
- Portuguese: variegado (pt)
- Romanian: pestriț (ro), vărgat (ro), multicolor (ro)
- Russian: разноцве́тный (ru) (raznocvétnyj), пёстрый (ru) (pjóstryj)
- Spanish: abigarrado (es)
- Swedish: brokig (sv)
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Noun
motley (plural motleys)
- An incongruous mixture.
- A jester's multicoloured clothes.
- (by extension) A jester; a fool.
c. 1598–1600 (date written), William Shakespeare, “As You Like It”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies (First Folio), London: Isaac Iaggard, and Ed Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, , page 198, column 2, line 71:Wil you be married, Motley?
Translations
Anagrams