mothball
Pronunciation
This text is extracted from the Wiktionary and it is available under the CC BY-SA 3.0 license | Terms and conditions | Privacy policy 0.003
Pronunciation
- (British) IPA: /mɒθbɔːl/
mothball (plural mothballs)
- (usually, in plural) A small ball of chemical pesticide (typically naphthalene) and deodorant placed in or around clothing and other articles susceptible to damage from mold or moth larvae in order to protect them from this damage.
- French: boule de naphtaline
- German: Mottenkugel
- Italian: pallina tarmicida, naftalina
- Portuguese: naftalina
- Russian: нафтали́новый ша́рик
- Spanish: bola de naftalina, bola de alcanfor
mothball (mothballs, present participle mothballing; past and past participle mothballed)
- (transitive) To store or shelve something no longer used.
- Synonyms: store, shelve, set aside, defer
- They mothballed the old version after the new one came out.
- (transitive, figuratively) To stop using (something), but keep it in good condition.
- 2014, A teacher, "Choosing a primary school: a teacher's guide for parents ↗", The Guardian, 23 September 2014:
- Some schools might have an art studio, an area of forestry in the playground, or a performance stage in the hall – all exceptional assets. Just check they get plenty of use and aren't mothballed while the school concentrates on (you guessed it) maths and literacy.
- 2014, A teacher, "Choosing a primary school: a teacher's guide for parents ↗", The Guardian, 23 September 2014:
- German: einmotten
- Russian: законсервировать
This text is extracted from the Wiktionary and it is available under the CC BY-SA 3.0 license | Terms and conditions | Privacy policy 0.003