Adjacent Words

Mildew definitions

	Tweet

Webster's 1828 Dictionary

MIL'DEW, n. [L. melligo, from mel, honey.]
1. Honey dew; a thick, clammy, sweet juice, found on the leaves of plants, which is said to injure the plants by corroding them, or otherwise preventing them from coming to perfection.
2. Spots on cloth or paper caused by moisture.
MIL'DEW, v.t. To taint with mildew.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: the process of becoming mildewed [syn: mildew, mold, mould]
2: a fungus that produces a superficial (usually white) growth on organic matter v
1: become moldy; spoil due to humidity; "The furniture molded in the old house" [syn: mold, mildew]

Merriam Webster's

I. noun Etymology: Middle English, from Old English meled?aw honeydew; akin to Old High German militou honeydew Date: 14th century 1. a. a superficial usually whitish growth produced especially on organic matter or living plants by fungi (as of the families Erysiphaceae and Peronosporaceae) b. a fungus producing mildew 2. a discoloration caused by fungi • mildewy adjective II. verb Date: 1606 transitive verb to affect with or as if with mildew intransitive verb to become affected with mildew

Britannica Concise

Conspicuous mass of threadlike hyphae (see mycelium) and fruiting structures produced by various fungi (division Mycota; see fungus). Mildew grows on cloth, fibers, leather goods, and plants, using these substances as food for growth and reproduction. Downy mildew and powdery mildew are plant diseases that affect hundreds of species.

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. & v. --n. 1 a destructive growth of minute fungi on plants. 2 a similar growth on paper, leather, etc. exposed to damp. --v.tr. & intr. taint or be tainted with mildew. Derivatives: mildewy adj. Etymology: OE mildeaw f. Gmc

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Mildew Mil"dew, n. [AS. melede['a]w; akin to OHG. militou, G. mehlthau, mehltau; prob. orig. meaning, honeydew; cf. Goth. milip honey. See Mellifluous, and Dew.] (Bot.) A growth of minute powdery or webby fungi, whitish or of different colors, found on various diseased or decaying substances.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Mildew Mil"dew, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mildewed; p. pr. & vb. n. Mildewing.] To taint with mildew. He . . . mildews the white wheat. --Shak.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Mildew Mil"dew, v. i. To become tainted with mildew.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

Mildew is a soft white fungus that grows in damp places. The room smelled of mildew.

Easton's Bible Dictionary

(the rendering of a Hebrew word meaning "to be yellow," yellowness), the result of cutting east winds blighting and thus rendering the grain unproductive (Deut. 28:22; 1 Kings 8:37; 2 Chr. 6:28).

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

mil'-du (yeraqon; Septuagint usually ikteros, literally, "jaundice"): In the 5 passages where it occurs it is associated with shiddaphon, "blasting" (De 28:22; 1Ki 8:37; 2Ch 6:28; Am 4:9; Hag 2:17). In Jer 30:6, the same word is translated "paleness," the yellow color of one with abdominal disease. The root-meaning is "greenish yellow"; compare the Arabic yarqan, meaning both "jaundice" and "blight." Mildrew or "rust" in grain is due to a special fungus, Puccinia graminis, whose life is divided between the barberry and cereals. Many other varieties of fungi which flourish upon other plants are also designated "mildew."

See BLASTING.

E. W. G. Masterman

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. Blight, blast, mould, must, mustiness, smut, rust.

Moby Thesaurus

biodegradability, biodegradation, blast, blight, break up, breakup, cancer, canker, corrosion, corrupt, corruption, crumble, crumble into dust, decay, decompose, decomposition, degradability, degradation, dilapidation, disintegrate, disintegration, disorganization, dissolution, dry rot, fall into decay, fall to pieces, fester, fetidity, fetidness, foulness, frowst, frowstiness, frowziness, fungus, funkiness, fustiness, gangrene, go bad, go to pieces, malodorousness, mold, molder, moldiness, mortify, moth, moth and rust, must, mustiness, necrose, noisomeness, odorousness, offensiveness, oxidation, oxidization, pest, putrefy, putresce, putridness, rancidity, rancidness, rankle, rankness, reastiness, repulsiveness, resolution, rot, rottenness, rust, smelliness, smut, sphacelate, spoil, spoilage, stinkingness, stuffiness, suppurate, worm