moil

[moil] /mɔɪl/
verb (used without object)
1.
to work hard; drudge.
2.
to whirl or churn ceaselessly; twist; eddy.
verb (used with object)
3.
Archaic. to wet or smear.
noun
4.
hard work or drudgery.
5.
confusion, turmoil, or trouble.
6.
Glassmaking. a superfluous piece of glass formed during blowing and removed in the finishing operation.
7.
Mining. a short hand tool with a polygonal point, used for breaking or prying out rock.
Origin
1350-1400; Middle English moillen to make or get wet and muddy < Middle French moillier < Vulgar Latin *molliāre, derivative of Latin mollis soft
Related forms
moiler, noun
moilingly, adverb
unmoiled, adjective
Examples from the web for moil
  • Read the stanza aloud and ask students to speculate on the meaning of the words moil and marge.
British Dictionary definitions for moil

moil

/mɔɪl/
verb
1.
to moisten or soil or become moist, soiled, etc
2.
(intransitive) to toil or drudge (esp in the phrase toil and moil)
noun
3.
toil; drudgery
4.
confusion; turmoil
Derived Forms
moiler, noun
Word Origin
C14 (to moisten; later: to work hard in unpleasantly wet conditions) from Old French moillier, ultimately from Latin mollis soft
Word Origin and History for moil
v.

"to labour in the mire" [Johnson], c.1400, from Old French moillier "to wet, moisten" (12c., Modern French mouiller), from Vulgar Latin *molliare, from Latin mollis "soft," from PIE *mel- "soft" (see mild). Related: Moiled; moiling.

n.

"toil, labor," 1612, from moil (v.).

Related Abbreviations for moil

MOIL

Marine Operations and Instrumentation Laboratory