molt Hear it!

molt definition

molt (mōlt)

intransitive verb

to cast off or shed the exoskeleton, hair, outer skin, horns, or feathers at certain intervals, prior to replacement of the castoff parts by a new growth: said of reptiles, birds, insects, etc.

Etymology: ME mouten (with unhistoric -l- after fault, in which the letter was orig. silent) < OE (be)mutian, to exchange < L mutare, to change: see mutate

transitive verb

to replace by molting

noun

  1. the act or process of molting
  2. the parts so shed

Related Forms:

Comments


Do you have more to add? Sign in to share your linguistic knowledge or observation.

Connect with Facebook