Meaning
Any flying insect of the order Lepidoptera not in the superfamily Papilionoidea, most species of which are nocturnal and can be distinguished from butterflies by feather-like antennae.
Etymology
Origin: Old English
Etymology tree substratebor.? Proto-Indo-European *mat- Proto-Indo-European *-ḗn Proto-Indo-European *matḗn Proto-Germanic *maþôder. Proto-West Germanic *moþþā Old English moþþe Middle English mothe English moth From Middle English moth, moththe, motthe, moght, mohþe, mouȝte, from Old English moþþe, mohþe, mohþa, from Proto-West Germanic *moþþā, from Proto-Germanic *maþô ~ *muttaz (“insect, worm, maggot”), from Proto-Indo-European *mutn-, *mut- (“worm”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian Motte (“moth”), West Frisian mot (“moth”), Dutch mot (“moth”), German Low German Motte, Mott (“moth”), German Motte (“moth”), Swedish mott (“moth”) and Norwegian Nynorsk mott (“moth”).
Synonyms & Antonyms
NYT Puzzle Appearances
Accepted in 9 recorded puzzles: