moor1

[moo r] /mʊər/
noun
1.
a tract of open, peaty, wasteland, often overgrown with heath, common in high latitudes and altitudes where drainage is poor; heath.
2.
a tract of land preserved for game.
Origin
before 900; Middle English more, Old English mōr; cognate with Dutch moer, German Moor marsh
Related forms
moory, adjective

moor2

[moo r] /mʊər/
verb (used with object)
1.
to secure (a ship, boat, dirigible, etc.) in a particular place, as by cables and anchors or by lines.
2.
to fix firmly; secure.
verb (used without object)
3.
to moor a ship, small boat, etc.
4.
to be made secure by cables or the like.
noun
5.
the act of mooring.
Origin
1485-95; earlier more, akin to Old English mǣrels- in mǣrelsrāp rope for mooring a ship; see marline

Moor

[moo r] /mʊər/
noun
1.
a Muslim of the mixed Berber and Arab people inhabiting NW Africa.
2.
a member of this group that invaded Spain in the 8th century a.d. and occupied it until 1492.
Origin
1350-1400; Middle English More < Middle French, variant of Maure < Latin Maurus < Greek Maûros
Examples from the web for moor
  • Many of their owners moor their boats at one of several nearby marinas.
  • In shallower areas, rigs can be anchored to the sea bottom — but it's dangerous to moor a drilling vessel in ultradeep water.
  • The eel merchants would moor alongside Billingsgate fish market and ply their wares cheaply to the public on the quay.
  • So much for my image of our Fiona with the wind in her hair on the heathery moor.
  • They will spend less on loud displays of wealth, from diamond-studded tiaras to yachts too big to moor.
  • Like a cold mist rolling off a moor, pressure seeps through cracks in confidence, and it can start before the first tee shot.
  • There are plenty of excellent and well-protected natural harbors, and you can anchor and moor your yacht on land.
  • Some of the houses on high bluffs look as if Heathcliff might emerge at any moment to cross a moor.
  • Finally, run a line between the float and a stake driven into the beach and moor the boat to this.
  • If you plan to moor your boat at a marina or dock, line up parking space early.
British Dictionary definitions for moor

moor1

/mʊə; mɔː/
noun
1.
a tract of unenclosed ground, usually having peaty soil covered with heather, coarse grass, bracken, and moss
Derived Forms
moory, adjective
Word Origin
Old English mōr; related to Old Saxon mōr, Old High German muor swamp

moor2

/mʊə; mɔː/
verb
1.
to secure (a ship, boat, etc) with cables or ropes
2.
(of a ship, boat, etc) to be secured in this way
3.
(not in technical usage) a less common word for anchor (sense 11)
Word Origin
C15: of Germanic origin; related to Old English mǣrelsrāp rope for mooring

Moor

/mʊə; mɔː/
noun
1.
a member of a Muslim people of North Africa, of mixed Arab and Berber descent. In the 8th century they were converted to Islam and established power in North Africa and Spain, where they established a civilization (756–1492)
Word Origin
C14: via Old French from Latin Maurus, from Greek Mauros, possibly from Berber
Word Origin and History for moor
v.

"to fasten (a vessel) by a cable," late 15c., probably related to Old English mærels "mooring rope," via unrecorded *mærian "to moor," or possibly borrowed from Middle Low German moren or Middle Dutch maren "to moor," from West Germanic *mairojan. Related: Moored, mooring. French amarrer is from Dutch.

n.

"waste ground," Old English mor "morass, swamp," from Proto-Germanic *mora- (cf. Old Saxon, Middle Dutch, Dutch meer "swamp," Old High German muor "swamp," also "sea," German Moor "moor," Old Norse mörr "moorland," marr "sea"), perhaps related to mere (n.), or from root *mer- "to die," hence "dead land."

The basic sense in place names is 'marsh', a kind of low-lying wetland possibly regarded as less fertile than mersc 'marsh.' The development of the senses 'dry heathland, barren upland' is not fully accounted for but may be due to the idea of infertility. [Cambridge Dictionary of English Place-Names]

Moor

n.

"North African, Berber," late 14c., from Old French More, from Medieval Latin Morus, from Latin Maurus "inhabitant of Mauritania" (northwest Africa, a region now corresponding to northern Algeria and Morocco), from Greek Mauros, perhaps a native name, or else cognate with mauros "black" (but this adjective only appears in late Greek and may as well be from the people's name as the reverse). Being a dark people in relation to Europeans, their name in the Middle Ages was a synonym for "Negro;" later (16c.-17c.) used indiscriminately of Muslims (Persians, Arabs, etc.) but especially those in India.

Encyclopedia Article for moor

tract of open country that may be either dry with heather and associated vegetation or wet with an acid peat vegetation. If wet, a moor is generally synonymous with bog (q.v.).

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