moult
/moʊlt/noun, verb
moult is spelled M-O-U-L-T: 5 letters. It appears about once in every 6 million words in written English, the 70,702nd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, moult means “The process of shedding or losing a covering of fur, feathers or skin etc” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of moult is moults.
How many letters and syllables are in moult?
| Letters | 5: M-O-U-L-T |
|---|---|
| In writing | about once in every 6 million words; the 70,702nd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is moult?
Moult appears about once in every 6 million words in written English, the 70,702nd most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce moult?
- US /moʊlt/
- UK /mɒlt/
- UK /məʊlt/
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-moult.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with moult?
6 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as moult from its last stressed vowel (/oʊlt/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of moult
- moults plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- molt US
- moulting participle, present
- moulted participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does moult mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
The process of shedding or losing a covering of fur, feathers or skin etc.
Some birds change colour during their winter moult.
- 2
The skin or feathers cast off during the process of moulting.
verb
- 1
To undergo the process of shedding or losing a covering of hair or fur, feathers, skin, horns, etc, and replacing it with a fresh one; to change by moulting.
Birds moult periodically.
- 2
To shed in such a manner.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Moult in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | mue , muer, dumer |
| German | Mauser, Häutung , (sich) mausern, (sich) häuten |
| Portuguese | muda , mudar |
| Spanish | muda, mudamiento (disused) , pelechar , mudar, perder, caérsele |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does moult come from?
From Middle English mouten, from Old English *mutian (attested in bemutian, “to exchange for”), from Latin mūtō (“to (re)move, change, vary, mutate, exchange, abandon”). Doublet of mute and mutate.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).