Moon
Pronunciation
- UK IPA: /muËn/
- Rhymes: -uËn
Origin
From Middle English mone, from Old English mÅna ("moon"), from Proto-Germanic *mÄ“nô ("moon"), from Proto-Indo-European *mḗhâ‚nÌ¥s ("moon, month"), from *mÄ“-² ("to measure"). Cognate with Scots mone, mune ("moone"), North Frisian muun ("moon"), West Frisian moanne ("moon"), Dutch maan ("moon"), German Mond ("moon"), Swedish mÃ¥ne ("moon"), Icelandic máni ("moon"), Latin mÄ“nsis ("month"). See also month, a related term within Indo-European.
Full definition of moon
Noun
moon
(plural moons)- The largest satellite of Earth.
- Any natural satellite of a planet.
- (literary) A month, particularly a lunar month.
- 1737, John Brickell, The natural history of North-Carolina, The number their age by Moons or Winters, and say a Woman or a Man is so many Moons old, and so they do with all memorable Actions in life, accounting it to be so many Moons or Winters since such or such a thing happened. Note: in earlier modern English, many nouns were capitalized, similar to present day German.
- 1822, Thomas Love Peacock, Maid Marian, Many moons had waxed and waned when on the afternoon of a lovely summer day a lusty broad-boned knight was riding through the forest of Sherwood.
- A crescent-like outwork in a fortification.
Synonyms
- (Earth's largest natural satellite) Moon
- (natural satellite of a planet) satellite, natural satellite
- (month) calendar month, lunar month, month
Derived terms
Verb
- (transitive, colloquial) To display one's buttocks to, typically as a jest, insult, or protest
- (intransitive, colloquial) (usually followed by over or after) To fuss over something adoringly; to be infatuated with someone.Sarah mooned over Sam's photograph for months.You've been mooning after her forever, why not just ask her out?
- To spend time idly, absent-mindedly.
- 1898, Joseph Conrad, We were only three on board. The poor old skipper mooned in the cabin.
- (transitive) To expose to the rays of the Moon.
- HollandIf they have it to be exceeding white indeed, they seethe it yet once more, after it hath been thus sunned and mooned.