Moss

UK: /ˈmɒs/ US: /mɔs, mɑs/ ,(môs, mos)

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

Moss / mɒs/ noun

1. Kate. born 1974, British supermodel
2. Sir Stirling. 1929–2020, English racing driver; won sixteen Grand Prix (1951–1961)

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026

moss /mɔs, mɑs/   n. [uncountable]

1. Plant Biology a tiny, leafy-stemmed plant that grows in a thick mass on moist ground, tree trunks, rocks, etc.

moss•y, adj., -i•er, -i•est. 

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

moss  (môs, mos), n. 

1. Plant Biology any tiny, leafy-stemmed, flowerless plant of the class Musci, reproducing by spores and growing in tufts, sods, or mats on moist ground, tree trunks, rocks, etc.
2. Plant Biology a growth of such plants.
3. Plant Biology any of various similar plants, as Iceland moss or club moss.
4. Scottish Terms [Chiefly Scot. and North Eng.] a swamp or bog.

v.t. 

5. to cover with a growth of moss:
   to moss a crumbling wall.

• bef. 1000; Middle English mos(se), Old English mos moss, bog; akin to German Moos, Old Norse mȳrr mire

moss′like′, adj. 

Moss  (môs, mos), n. 

1. Biographical Howard, born 1922, U.S. poet, editor, and playwright.

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

moss / mɒs/ noun

1. Also called: mossplant any bryophyte of the phylum Bryophyta, typically growing in dense mats on trees, rocks, moist ground, etc
   See also peat moss
2. a clump or growth of any of these plants
3. any of various similar but unrelated plants, such as club moss, Spanish moss, Ceylon moss, rose moss, and reindeer moss
4. a peat bog or marsh

Etymology: Old English mos swamp; compare Middle Dutch, Old High German mos bog, Old Norse mosi; compare also Old Norse mӯrr mire

ˈmossˌlike adjective

ˈmossy adjective

ˈmossiness noun