Definify.com

Webster 1913 Edition


Mole

Mole

,
Noun.
[AS.
māl
; akin to OHG.
meil
, Goth.
mail
Cf.
Mail
a spot.]
1.
A spot; a stain; a mark which discolors or disfigures.
[Obs.]
Piers Plowman.
2.
A spot, mark, or small permanent protuberance on the human body; esp., a spot which is dark-colored, from which commonly issue one or more hairs.

Mole

,
Noun.
[L.
mola
.]
A mass of fleshy or other more or less solid matter generated in the uterus.

Mole

,
Noun.
[F.
môle
, L.
moles
. Cf.
Demolish
,
Emolument
,
Molest
.]
A mound or massive work formed of masonry or large stones, etc., laid in the sea, often extended either in a right line or an arc of a circle before a port which it serves to defend from the violence of the waves, thus protecting ships in a harbor; also, sometimes, the harbor itself.
Brande & C.

Mole

,
Noun.
[OE.
molle
, either shortened fr.
moldwerp
, or from the root of E.
mold
soil: cf. D.
mol
, OD.
molworp
. See
Moldwarp
.]
1.
(Zool.)
Any insectivore of the family
Talpidae
. They have minute eyes and ears, soft fur, and very large and strong fore feet.
☞ The common European mole, or moldwarp (
Talpa Europaea
), is noted for its extensive burrows. The common American mole, or shrew mole (
Scalops aquaticus
), and star-nosed mole (
Condylura cristata
) have similar habits.
☞ In the Scriptures, the name is applied to two unindentified animals, perhaps the chameleon and mole rat.
2.
A plow of peculiar construction, for forming underground drains.
[U.S.]
Duck mole
.
See under
Duck
.
Golden mole
.
Mole cricket
(Zool.)
,
an orthopterous insect of the genus
Gryllotalpa
, which excavates subterranean galleries, and throws up mounds of earth resembling those of the mole. It is said to do damage by injuring the roots of plants. The common European species (
Gryllotalpa vulgaris
), and the American (
Gryllotalpa borealis
), are the best known.
Mole rat
(Zool.)
,
any one of several species of Old World rodents of the genera
Spalax
,
Georychus
, and several allied genera. They are molelike in appearance and habits, and their eyes are small or rudimentary.
Mole shrew
(Zool.)
,
any one of several species of short-tailed American shrews of the genus
Blarina
, esp.
Blarina brevicauda
.
Water mole
,
the duck mole.

Mole

,
Verb.
T.
[
imp. & p. p.
Moled
;
p. pr. & vb. n.
Moling
.]
1.
To form holes in, as a mole; to burrow; to excavate;
as, to
mole
the earth
.
2.
To clear of molehills.
[Prov. Eng.]
Pegge.

Webster 1828 Edition


Mole

MOLE

, n.
1.
A spot, mark or small permanent protuberance on the human body, from which usually issue one or more hairs.
2.
[L.mola.] A mass of fleshy matter of a spherical figure, generated in the uterus.

MOLE

,
Noun.
[L. moles.]
1.
A mound or massive work formed of large stones laid in the sea by means of coffer dams, extended either in a right line or an arch of a circle before a port, which it serves to defend from the violent impulse of the waves; thus protecting ships in a harbor. The word is sometimes used for the harbor itself.
2.
Among the Romans, a kind of mausoleum, built like a round tower on a square base, insulated, encompassed with columns and covered with a dome.

MOLE

,
Noun.
A small animal of the genus Talpa, which in search of worms or other insects, forms a road just under the surface of the ground, raising the soil into a little ridge; from which circumstance it is called a mold-warp, or mold-turner. The mole has very small eyes.
Learn of the mole to plow, the worm to weave.

MOLE

,
Verb.
T.
To clear of mole-hills. [Local.]