English

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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From mould +‎ -y.

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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mouldy (comparative mouldier or more mouldy, superlative mouldiest or most mouldy)

  1. Covered with mould.
    Synonym: rotten
  2. Showing signs of neglect; disused.
    Synonyms: disused, neglected
  3. (UK, colloquial) Worthless; lousy; rotten.
    • 2014, Patricia Combs, Café Paradise:
      'Go cuddle up to your mouldy old papers,' she shouted at him. 'See how warm they'll keep you.' She slammed the door and made to walk off.
  4. (obsolete, slang, derogatory) Gray-headed, whether from age or hair powder.
    • 1820, Satirical and Political Pamphlets, page 27:
      Let him be great, as e'er he will, / He's rotten at the heart's core still; / Yet counsel from his mouldy pate, / Supports the trembling chair of state, / And scatters with unsparing hand, / A thousand miseries o'er the land; []

Derived terms

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Translations

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References

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  • (gray-headed): 1873, John Camden Hotten, The Slang Dictionary