mote en · NOUN · etymology 1
Pronunciation
- /moʊt/ (General-American)
- /məʊt/ (Received-Pronunciation)
- (Southern-England) audio
Etymology
From Middle English mot, from Old English mot (“grain of sand; mote; atom”), from Proto-West Germanic *mot (“grain of dirt or sand, speck”). Perhaps linked to English mud. Compare West Frisian mot (“peat dust”), Dutch mot (“dust from turf; sawdust; grit”), Low German mut (“peat dust, grit”), Norwegian mutt (“speck; mote; splinter; chip”), Italian mota (“mud”), Spanish mota (“speck”).
Meanings
-
(qualifier:literary or puristic; otherwise archaic; literary or puristic; otherwise archaic) A small particle; a speck.
Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.
1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Matthew 7:5:I wanted to shrink myself to a mote of dust, plunge into this pool I held in my own cyclopean hands, soar down these runs of light to places where light itself was born from this colloquy of dust.
1979, J.G. Ballard, The Unlimited Dream Company, chapter 9:What shall a Mote up to a Monarch rise? An Emmet match an Emperor in might?
a. 1729, Edward Taylor, Meditation. Joh. 14.2. I go to prepare a place for you:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| motes | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Deriveds
motelike · moteless · motey · dust mote · moted
Relateds
Synonyms
Translations (37)
cs smítko (A small particle; a speck) · es mota (A small particle; a speck) · hy շյուղ (A small particle; a speck) · ru пыли́нка (A small particle; a speck) · ja ちり (A small particle; a speck) · fi hiukkanen (A small particle; a speck) · et kübe (A small particle; a speck) · ka მტვერი (A small particle; a speck) · fi hitunen (A small particle; a speck) · ja 微粉 (A small particle; a speck) · gl argueiro (A small particle; a speck) · ja ほこり (A small particle; a speck) · enm mot (A small particle; a speck) · he גרגיר אבק (A small particle; a speck) · ru сори́нка (A small particle; a speck) · nl stofdeeltje (A small particle; a speck) · hy բեկորիկ (A small particle; a speck) · it pagliuzza (A small particle; a speck) · ga cáithnín (A small particle; a speck) · tr zerre (A small particle; a speck) · bg прашинка (A small particle; a speck) · is rykögn (A small particle; a speck) · tr parçacık (A small particle; a speck) · is korn (A small particle; a speck) · te నలక (A small particle; a speck) · nl vuiltje (A small particle; a speck) · uk порошинка (A small particle; a speck) · gl lixo (A small particle; a speck) · is ögn (A small particle; a speck) · uk пилинка (A small particle; a speck) · sv smolk (A small particle; a speck) · tr tanecik (A small particle; a speck) · de Stäubchen (A small particle; a speck) · pt partícula (A small particle; a speck) · sv grand (A small particle; a speck) · fr atome (A small particle; a speck) · pl pyłek (A small particle; a speck)