Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
Definition: Molting |
MoltingNoun1. Periodic shedding of the cuticle in arthropods or the outer skin in reptiles. Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
Date "molting" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1869. (references) |
| Domain | Definition |
Health | Casting off feathers, hair, or cuticle. Molting is a process of sloughing or desquamation, especially the shedding of an outer covering and the development of a new one. This phenomenon permits growth in arthropods, skin renewal in amphibians and reptiles, and the shedding of winter coats in birds and mammals. (references) |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
In birds, moulting or '\molting' is the routine shedding of old feathers. Also, the shedding of old skin in reptiles.In arthropods, such as insects and crustaceans, molting describes the shedding of the exoskeleton, typically to allow for further growth. See ecdysis.
Moulting in birds:
Moulting in birds is a comparatively slow process, as a bird never sheds all its feathers at once; it must keep enough of its feathers to regulate its body temperature, repeal moisture, and fly. A moulting bird should never have any bald spots. If a pet bird has any bald spots, the bird should be brought to an avian veterinarian to search for possible causes for the baldness, which may include giardia, mites, or feather-plucking.
The process of moulting
1. The bird begins to shed some old feathers
2. Pin feathers grow in to replace the old feathers
3. As the pin feathers become full feathers, other feathers are shed.
This is a cyclical process that happens in many phases. In general, a moult begins at a bird's head, progresses down the body to its wings and torso, and finishes with the tail feathers.
Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Moult."
Synonyms: MoltingSynonyms: ecdysis (n), molt (n), moult (n), moulting (n). (additional references) |
| Context | Synonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus). |
Divestment | Nudity; bareness; Adjective: undress; dishabille; the altogether; nudation, denudation; decortication, depilation, excoriation, desquamation; molting; exfoliation; trichosis. |
| Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus. | |
Crosswords: Molting |
| English words defined with "molting": Exuviation. (references) |
| Specialty definitions using "molting": Ecdysterone ♦ SOFT CRAB SHEDDER. (references) |
| Domain | Usage | |
Screenplays | I'm so ticked off that I'm molting! (Aladdin; writing credit: Roger Allers; Ron Clements) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | ||
| Domain | Title |
Books | |
Music |
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Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| Thumbnail | Description & Credit | Thumbnail | Description & Credit |
 | Three successive stages of the molting of one individual of Callinectes sapidus. In: "Life History of the Blue Crab (Callinectes Sapidus" by W. P. Hay. Report of the Bureau of Fisheries 1904. P. 413, Plate III. Credit: Fisheries. |  | Further stages of the molting of Callinectes sapidus. Same individual as Plate III. In: "Life History of the Blue Crab (Callinectes Sapidus" by W. P. Hay. Report of the Bureau of Fisheries 1904. P. 413, Plate IV. Credit: Fisheries. |
Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits. | |||
| Title | Author | Quote |
Grapes of Wrath | Steinbeck, John | The evening light was on the fields, and the cotton plants threw long shadows on the ground, and the molting willow tree threw a long shadow |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com. |
| Expression | Frequency per Day |
crabs hermit molting | 13 |
crab hermit molting | 10 |
molting | 7 |
bird molting | 7 |
molting tarantula | 4 |
blue crabs light molting | 4 |
chicken molting | 3 |
cockatiel molting | 3 |
crab molting | 3 |
crabs molting | 2 |
molting snake | 2 |
canary molting | 2 |
molting parakeets | 2 |
insect molting | 2 |
molting parrot | 2 |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| Language | Translations for "molting"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses. | |
Chinese | 蜕变 (molt, Molted, Moulted, Moulting). (various references) | |
Danish | larvehudsafstødning (exuvia, molting skin). (various references) | |
Dutch | exuviae (exuvia, molting skin). (various references) | |
Finnish | nahanluonti (exuvia, molting skin). (various references) | |
French | exuvie (molting skin). (various references) | |
German | mausernd (moulting). (various references) | |
Greek | προνυμφικό έκδυμα (exuvia, molting skin). (various references) | |
Italian | muta (moulting, pack, shedding, wet suit). (various references) | |
Japanese Kanji | 脱皮 (emergence, shedding), 換羽 , 換毛 . (various references) | |
Japanese Katakana | か"う, か"もう (thistledown), っぴ (emergence, shedding). (various references) | |
Pig Latin | oltingmay.(various references) | |
Portuguese | exúvio (exuvia, molting skin). (various references) | |
Spanish | exuvias (exuvia, molting skin). (various references) | |
Swedish | exuvium (exuvia, molting skin). (various references) | |
Turkish | tüy dökme (exuviation, Molt, moult, moulting), deri değiştirme (Molt, moult, moulting, sloughing). (various references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various translation references. | ||
Misspellings | |
"Molting" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: moating, Moling, molti, Montigny, Mooltan, Mostin, Mostini, motig, moting, motting, mouting, multing, multyn, smolting. (additional references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |
| # of Phoneme Matches | Pronunciation | Word(s) rhyming with "molting" (pronounced mō"lting) |
| 5 | -ō" l t i ng | bolting, jolting, revolting. |
| 4 | -l t i ng | assaulting, belting, catapulting, consulting, defaulting, exalting, faulting, halting, insulting, malting, melting, quilting, resulting, salting, smelting, somersaulting, tilting, vaulting, wilting. |
| 3 | -t i ng | annotating, anticipating, appointing, appreciating, appropriating, approximating, arbitrating, abrogating, abutting, accelerating, accenting, accentuating, accepting, accommodating, abating, abbreviating, abdicating, abducting, abetting, aborting, accosting, accounting, accrediting, accumulating, acquitting, acting, activating, adapting, addicting, adjudicating, adjusting, administrating, admitting, adopting, advocating, affecting, affiliating, afflicting, aggravating, agitating, airlifting, alerting, alienating, alleviating, allocating, allotting, alternating, amounting, arresting, articulating, assassinating, asserting, assimilating, assisting, associating, attempting, attesting, attracting, attributing, auditing, augmenting, authenticating, automating, averting, awaiting, babysitting, backbiting, baiting, balloting, bankrupting, batting, beating, befitting, begetting, benefiting, benefitting, berating, besetting, besting, betting, biting, bitting, blacklisting, blanketing, blasting, bloating, bloodletting, blunting, boasting, boating, boosting, booting, boycotting, breasting, broadcasting, budgeting, bullfighting, bunting, bursting, busting, butting, calculating, captivating, carpeting, carting, castigating, casting, castrating, cavorting, celebrating, cementing, chanting, charting, chatting, cheating, chlorinating, circulating, circumventing, citing, clotting, coagulating, coasting, coating, coexisting, cohabiting, collaborating, collecting, combating, combatting, comforting, commemorating, commenting, committing, communicating, commuting, compensating, competing, complementing, completing, complicating, complimenting, composting, computing, concentrating, concocting, conducting, confiscating, conflicting, confronting, congratulating, connecting, consenting, consisting, consolidating, consorting, constituting, constricting, constructing, consummating, contacting, contaminating, contemplating, contesting, contracting, contradicting, contrasting, contributing, converting, convicting, cooperating, coordinating, copycatting, correcting, correlating, corroborating, corrupting, costing, counteracting, Counterfeiting, counting, courting, crafting, crating, creating, crediting, cresting, culminating, cultivating, cutting, darting, dating, daunting, debating, debilitating, decaffeinating, decanting, decelerating, decimating, decorating, dedicating, deducting, defeating, defecting, deflating, deflecting, defrosting, degenerating, delegating, deleting, deliberating, delighting, delineating, delisting, demonstrating, denigrating, denting, departing, depicting, depleting, deporting, depositing, deprecating, depreciating, deregulating, deserting, designating, destructing, detecting, deteriorating, detonating, detracting, devastating, devoting, dictating, dieting, differentiating, digesting, diluting, directing, disappointing, disconcerting, disconnecting, discounting, discrediting, discriminating, disgusting, disintegrating, disorienting, dispiriting, disputing, disquieting, disrespecting, disrupting, dissecting, disseminating, dissenting, dissipating, distorting, distracting, distributing, districting, diverting, divesting, documenting, domesticating, dominating, donating, doting, dotting, doubting, drafting, drifting, duplicating, dusting, eating, editing, educating, effecting, elaborating, elating, electing, electroplating, elevating, eliciting, eliminating, emanating, emigrating, emitting, emulating, enacting, encapsulating, enchanting, encrusting, enlisting, entrusting, enunciating, equating, equivocating, eradicating, erecting, erupting, escalating, escorting, estimating, evacuating, evaluating, evaporating, everlasting, evicting, exacerbating, exacting, exaggerating, exasperating, excavating, excepting, exciting, excoriating, excruciating, executing, exempting, exerting, exhausting, exhibiting, exhilarating, exhorting, existing, exiting, exonerating, expecting, expediting, experimenting, exploiting, exporting, extenuating, exterminating, extorting, extracting, extraditing, extrapolating, fabricating, facilitating, fainting, fascinating, fasting, feasting, fermenting, ferreting, Fetting, fidgeting, fighting, fingerprinting, firefighting, fitting, flaunting, fleeting, flirting, flitting, floating, flouting, fluctuating, fomenting, footing, footnoting, forecasting, forfeiting, forgetting, formulating, fragmenting, fretting, fronting, frosting, fruiting, frustrating, generating, getting, gifting, glinting, gloating, graduating, grafting, granting, grating, gravitating, greeting, gritting, grouting, grunting, gunfighting, gusting, gutting, gyrating, hallucinating, handwriting, harvesting, Hasting, hating, haunting, heating, hesitating, highlighting, hinting, hitting, hoisting, homeporting, hosting, humiliating, hunting, hurting, hydrogenating, igniting, illuminating, illustrating, imitating, impacting, imparting, impersonating, implanting, implementing, implicating, importing, imprinting, inaugurating, incapacitating, incarcerating, incinerating, inciting, incorporating, incriminating, incubating, indicating, indicting, infatuating, infecting, infighting, infiltrating, inflating, inflicting, infuriating, ingesting, ingratiating, inhabiting, inheriting, inhibiting, initiating, injecting, innovating, inserting, insinuating, insisting, inspecting, instigating, instituting, instructing, insulating, integrating, interacting, intercepting, interdicting, interesting, interpreting, interrogating, interrupting, intersecting, intimidating, intoxicating, inundating, invalidating, inventing, investigating, investing, invigorating, inviting, irritating, isolating, jetting, jousting, jutting, kiting, knitting, lactating, lambasting, lamenting, laminating, lasting, legislating, letting, levitating, liberating, lifting, lighting, limiting, liquidating, listing, litigating, locating, looting, lubricating, lusting, mandating, manifesting, manipulating, marketing, marting, masturbating, mating, matting, mediating, meditating, meeting, migrating, minting, misappropriating, misinterpreting, misrepresenting, misstating, mistreating, mitigating, moderating, molesting, moonlighting, motivating, mounting, mutating, mutilating, muting, nauseating, navigating, necessitating, negating, neglecting, negotiating, nesting, netting, nitrating, nominating, nonbiting, nonoperating, nonsporting, nonvoting, noting, Nutting, objecting, obliterating, obstructing, obviating, officiating, offsetting, omitting, operating, opting, orbiting, orchestrating, originating, oscillating, ousting, Outfitting, outing, outwitting, overeating, overestimating, overheating, overreacting, overshooting, overstating, painting, panting, parachuting, parenting, participating, parting, pasting, patenting, patting, penetrating, percolating, perfecting, permeating, permitting, perpetrating, perpetuating, persecuting, persisting, perverting, petting, picketing, piloting, pinpointing, pirating, pitting, placating, planting, plating, plotting, plummeting, pocketing, pointing, polluting, pontificating, populating, porting, posting, pouting, precipitating, predicting, predominating, preempting, preexisting, presenting, preventing, printing, procrastinating, profiting, prognosticating, prohibiting, projecting, proliferating, promoting, prompting, promulgating, propagating, prosecuting, prospecting, protecting, protesting, pulsating, purporting, putting, quieting, quitting, quoting, radiating, rafting, ranting, ratcheting, rating, reacting, reactivating, readjusting, reallocating, reasserting, rebutting, recalculating, recanting, recasting, reciprocating, reciting, recollecting, reconnecting, reconstituting, reconstructing, recounting, recreating, recruiting, recuperating, redacting, redecorating, redirecting, redistributing, redistricting, reelecting, reevaluating, refitting, reflecting, refuting, regenerating, regretting, regulating, rehabilitating, reigniting, reincorporating, reinstating, reinstituting, reinterpreting, reinventing, reinvesting, reinvigorating, reiterating, rejecting, rejuvenating, relating, relegating, relenting, relocating, remarketing, renegotiating, renovating, renting, repainting, repatriating, repeating, replanting, replicating, reporting, representing, reprinting, repudiating, requesting, rerouting, resenting, resisting, resonating, resorting, respecting, restarting, restating, resting, restricting, resubmitting, resurrecting, resuscitating, retaliating, retesting, retracting, retreating, retrofitting, reuniting, reverberating, reverting, revisiting, rewriting, rioting, riveting, roasting, rocketing, rooting, rotating, rotting, rusting, salivating, saluting, saturating, scapegoating, scouting, sculpting, seating, sedating, segregating, selecting, separating, setting, shafting, sheeting, shifting, shooting, shoplifting, shorting, shouting, shunting, shutting, sifting, sighting, simulating, siting, sitting, skating, skirting, skyrocketing, skywriting, slanting, slighting, slitting, slotting, smarting, snorting, soliciting, songwriting, sorting, speculating, spitting, splitting, sporting, spotlighting, spotting, spouting, sprinting, sprouting, spurting, squatting, squinting, squirting, stagnating, starting, stating, stimulating, stipulating, strutting, subcontracting, subjecting, submitting, subordinating, substituting, subtracting, subverting, suffocating, suggesting, superconducting, supplanting, supplementing, supporting, surmounting, suspecting, sweating, Sweeting, syndicating, tabulating, tainting, targeting, tasting, taunting, telecommuting, telemarketing, tempting, tenting, terminating, testing, thermosetting, thrusting, thwarting, ticketing, titillating, toasting, tolerating, tormenting, toting, touting, translating, transmitting, transplanting, transporting, treating, trotting, trumpeting, trusting, twisting, typecasting, typesetting, Typewriting, undercutting, underestimating, underreporting, understating, underwriting, undulating, unexciting, uninteresting, uninviting, uniting, unrelenting, unremitting, unseating, unstinting, unsuspecting, unwitting, updating, uplifting, uprooting, upsetting, urinating, vacating, vacillating, validating, ventilating, venting, vesting, vetting, vibrating, violating, visiting, vomiting, voting, wafting, waiting, wanting, wasting, weighting, weightlifting, wetting, whiting, wildcatting, witting, wresting, writing, yachting. |
Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits. | ||
Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams | |
| Words within the letters "g-i-l-m-n-o-t" | |
-1 letter: tiglon, toling. | |
-2 letters: glint, ingot, lingo, tigon. | |
-3 letters: gilt, glim, glom, into, limn, limo, ling, lino, lint, lion, loin, long, loti, milo, milt, mint, moil, molt, noil, omit, ting, toil, tong. | |
-4 letters: gin, git, got, ion, lin, lit, log, lot, mig, mil, mog, mol, mon, mot, nil, nim, nit, nog, nom, not, oil, til. | |
| Words containing the letters "g-i-l-m-n-o-t" | |
+1 letter: longtime, mottling, moulting. | |
+2 letters: molesting, moonlight. | |
+3 letters: completing, immolating, locomoting, modulating, monologist, moonlights, outsmiling, toolmaking, turmoiling. | |
+4 letters: amblygonite, collimating, complecting, complotting, dislodgment, formulating, ligamentous, limnologist, longanimity, meliorating, migrational, mislocating, monologists, monologuist, moonlighted, moonlighter, mothballing, outblooming, outclimbing, outfumbling, outmuscling, overmelting, terminology, toolmakings. | |
+5 letters: amalgamation, amblygonites, ameliorating, automobiling, comfortingly, complicating, demodulating, demonologist, dislodgement, dislodgments, dolomitizing, entomologies, entomologist, enzymologist, homologating, homologation, immunologist, legitimation, limnologists, lobotomising, lobotomizing, locksmithing, lognormality, magniloquent, metabolizing, metalworking, mineralogist, monologuists, moonlighters, moonlighting, motorcycling, multimegaton, multipronged, nematologies, nematologist, nonalignment, nonmalignant, numerologist, promulgating, promulgation, steamrolling, trampolining. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro. | |
| 1. Definition 2. Synonyms 3. Crosswords 4. Usage: Modern | 5. Usage: Commercial 6. Images: Slideshow 7. Images: Photo Album 8. Quotations: Fiction | 9. Expressions: Internet 10. Translations: Modern 11. Derivations 12. Rhymes | 13. Anagrams 14. Bibliography |
Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
