Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- adjective Slightly wet; damp.
- adjective Humid.
- adjective Characterized by considerable rainfall; rainy.
- adjective Juicy or succulent; not dried out.
- adjective Tearful.
from The Century Dictionary.
- To make moist; moisten.
- New; fresh.
- Damp; slightly wet; suffused with wetness in a moderate degree: as, moist air; a moist hand.
- noun Wetness; wet; moisture.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- transitive verb obsolete To moisten.
- adjective Moderately wet; damp; humid; not dry.
- adjective obsolete Fresh, or new.
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- adjective slightly wet
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
Support
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Examples
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Keep them moist -- not wet and sodden, but _moist_ all the time.
Success with Small Fruits Edward Payson Roe 1863
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I also do not like the word moist, which is why you will never see any discussion of Duncan Hines products in this space.
In The Bag 2007
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I also do not like the word moist, which is why you will never see any discussion of Duncan Hines products in this space.
Archive 2007-08-05 2007
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Late Night tells Fresh Air's Terry Gross that he is appreciative of the word moist - for being the "worst word ever."
NPR Topics: News 2011
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Dry the board thoroughly, because bacteria thrive in moist places, says Alan Greene, a pediatrician at Stanford's Lucile Packard Children's Hospital.
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Unfortunately as we age and our bodies produce less estrogen, that means that they also produce less collagen and oil that help keep our skin moist and youthful looking.
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Milk from another animal that is treated with a bacteria from the lining of a calves stomach and then inoculated with another bacteria to form mold and then left to age in moist dark cool place.
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Unfortunately as we age and our bodies produce less estrogen, that means that they also produce less collagen and oil that help keep our skin moist and youthful looking.
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It grows 3 to 5 feet high and wide in moist soil and partial shade and blooms white from June to September.
Knowing when to prune is crucial for dependable flower blossoms Joel M. Lerner 2010
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Be sure to keep your child's skin moist with softening lotions (ask your doctor for a recommendation) and keep his or her fingernails trimmed.
born2badored commented on the word moist
Why do so many people hate moist? I love it! take 5
1. I hate dry mouth
2. I love turning you on
3. cracked lips? blah!
4.Tears of Joy on my cashmere sweater
5. summer nights, the grass on my tired feat.
December 6, 2006
bobfet1 commented on the word moist
I really like moist. It is a very moist sounding word
December 14, 2006
andrea commented on the word moist
The word moist makes me throw up in my mouth a little.
December 20, 2006
oroboros commented on the word moist
why not try: madefy
December 20, 2006
ss6233 commented on the word moist
I can't even deal with it. When I go to buy cake mix at the store, I am totally conflicted. Just use the word "fresh" instead of the dreaded "m word." Sick times 20, y'all.
January 3, 2007
beardofbees commented on the word moist
It's this love/hate thing that illustrate's moist's loaded nature. It's so evocative. I also like moistened. If I were a pirate my ship would be called the Moistened Wench.
January 31, 2007
chained_bear commented on the word moist
I agree with ss6233, to the letter. I don't ever want to buy a product with this word on it. Even if it's supposed to be, you know, a box of Moist. Eeeeyew.
And "Moistened Wench"? I guess it's a good name for a pirate ship, but if I overheard this phrase at a party, I would drop my drink and literally run for the door.
January 31, 2007
abraxaszugzwang commented on the word moist
Man, so many people hate this word. Btw, I love the name Moistened Wench!
February 20, 2007
jennarenn commented on the word moist
Save it for Talk Like a Pirate Day.
February 21, 2007
sonofgroucho commented on the word moist
What does "crufty" mean, or should one never ask that?
October 10, 2007
uselessness commented on the word moist
It's part of my new super-duper word-rating scale. Not a favorable score.
October 10, 2007
chained_bear commented on the word moist
Edit my previous comment: I would run for the door, but I would not drop my drink.
October 10, 2007
jennarenn commented on the word moist
How did this word make it onto The History of Cool?
October 11, 2007
uselessness commented on the word moist
Hmm, it was many months ago. I did a lot of extensive "research" on the nets to verify each word. So though I can't recall it specifically now, I'm pretty sure I saw it used that way a couple times. Probably because people are strange, and consider themselves ironic.
October 11, 2007
chained_bear commented on the word moist
I still say: Eew.
October 11, 2007
reesetee commented on the word moist
I had a good laugh reading the titles of the lists where this word ended up. It's like walking out of the courthouse through a jeering crowd of protesters.
Not that I'd know what that was like.
October 11, 2007
kewpid commented on the word moist
October 11, 2007
john commented on the word moist
Oh my.
This reminds me of the Wordie Flickr group, which has been dormant for a while. Good opportunity to let new folks know of its existence and encourage them to join, and inspire us to dig up some good word/text photos for posting.
October 11, 2007
reesetee commented on the word moist
Wait a minute--there's a Wordie Flickr group?? Why didn't someone say something???
*flipping through photos for good ones*
October 12, 2007
jennarenn commented on the word moist
Ok, why is Flickr/Yahoo asking for my credit-card number?
October 12, 2007
reesetee commented on the word moist
Maybe you're on the paid subscription page?
October 12, 2007
sionnach commented on the word moist
Why do people hate this word so vehemently?
October 28, 2007
seanahan commented on the word moist
Let's examine some of the lists this is on.
BAD words, by fluffymoo
words that make my skin crawl, by minervacat
Words I Hate, by Magwitch
Words I Hate, by MacBean
Words I Absolutely Can NOT Stand., by andrea
Unspeakables, by roblord
Words I dislike, by SarahCN
words i hate, by beccacat
Words that I hate with the fire of a thousand suns:, by noverb
Totally Normal Words That Can Make You Squirm, by tjesser
least favorite words, by neversent
words I cannot stand, by punky
Words I Hate, by masonm894
Words I just don't like at all . . ., by kingofbash
Hates, by HKNovielli
Grrrrr, by ElmoAli
gross., by rhoda
black listed, by actingsoadultnow
horribleawfulterrible words, by doublefourtime
Not fond of, by ashtonhaley
Hmm, it looks like a lot of people hate this word.
October 28, 2007
bilby commented on the word moist
I live in moist. It grows on my bloody ceiling, sprouts hairs on the fans and gives me fungus in the *(&^%/! Enough moist!
April 19, 2008
plethora commented on the word moist
Ew, bilby.
April 19, 2008
crunchysaviour commented on the word moist
This does, indeed, seem to be a widely despised word. I do not have that little switch in my mind that makes me gag when I hear it, that so many others seem to.
August 21, 2008
rolig commented on the word moist
This word is going on my Fibrous Words list. I like it. It is what it is. It's not as wet as wet, but is a lot moister, and sexier, than damp. (Compare something that moistens your mood vs. something that dampens your mood.) By the way, in Slovene, the word mojster (pronounced just like "moister") means master, but more than that it means maestro and master craftsman, tradesman, etc. When you're having trouble with your plumbing, you hire a mojster.
September 10, 2008
reesetee commented on the word moist
Good thinking. I know I'm going against the crowd, but I really don't dislike the word. I don't love it, but I don't dislike it.
September 10, 2008
chained_bear commented on the word moist
This is one of the words that made me realize when I was very young that some words suck. I remember conjuring a sentence made of a bunch of words I didn't like, much to the amusement of an older sister (who still utters said sentence on occasion just to watch me squirm):
"Would you like a package of moist ointment with your meal at Lemoyne Sleeper? How about some drink?"
Gah!! They all still bug me.
September 10, 2008
rolig commented on the word moist
Oy, c_b, it seems like it's the oi diphthong you don't like, especially in combination with m and n (nasals). You might have problems in my adopted country, where the most common exclamation (for expressing worry, distress, alarm, shock) is Oj joj! (Oy yoy!) and one of the most common female names is Mojca (pronounced MOY-tsa).
September 10, 2008
frogapplause commented on the word moist
Note to self: If "moist" is ever listed on "Identify the Wordie", it is NOT c_b!
September 10, 2008
chained_bear commented on the word moist
Rolig: I'm not sure it's the diphthong so much—the examples you cite actually sound like fun, and I've been known to ejaculate "Oy!" quite often—but as I wander through my "favorites" lists (and god knows there are enough of them), I'll keep an eye out. The nasal thing, you're probably right about.
Mojca! I like that as an exclamation. Mojca!
September 10, 2008
rolig commented on the word moist
I have a good friend here named Mojca, so use it with care when you're exclaiming. It's actually a lovely old Slavic name, which originally meant something like "My own darling one" (from moja "my" fem. + ica, a diminutive/affectionate suffix).
September 10, 2008
reesetee commented on the word moist
Ooh, lovely, rolig!
Frog, don't forget that chained could use that word just to throw you off.
On second thought. . . . No. No, I don't think she'd be able to see her way to doing even that.
September 10, 2008
pterodactyl commented on the word moist
Moist doesn't make me gag. It makes me giggle. It just seems inherently ridiculous, and for that I love it.
Rolig -- I think part of the reason why moisten is sexier than dampen is that dampen doesn't just mean "make wet". It also means something like suppress or reduce.
September 10, 2008
chained_bear commented on the word moist
Rolig, I think the name is lovely, and so are the sounds (and the spelling!). I wasn't using it as a swear-word-type exclamation.
"Mojca!"
Tell your friend her name is beautiful, probably as beautiful as she is. :)
September 10, 2008
plethora commented on the word moist
There's a Facebook group.
October 3, 2008
reesetee commented on the word moist
Haha! Why am I surprised? ;-)
October 3, 2008
chained_bear commented on the word moist
For some reason, though my hatred of this word has not abated, I don't mind the word moisture.
October 3, 2008
reesetee commented on the word moist
That sounds more weather-ish to me.
October 3, 2008
ciaoginny commented on the word moist
Moist is my least favorite word of all time.
October 9, 2008
bilby commented on the word moist
You have company. Whine away!
October 9, 2008
self_evident commented on the word moist
Reading this comment feed was actually painful for me.
November 19, 2008
rolig commented on the word moist
A person who practices moism.
December 1, 2008
bilby commented on the word moist
*smoothes his whiskers into a handlebar mo*
December 1, 2008
bilby commented on the word moist
An apt offering from Craftastrophe.
April 5, 2009
reesetee commented on the word moist
I just wanted to tell everyone that "a moist and fairly potent complex low pressure system" is moving into this area, according to the latest local weather forecast. So if you hate "moist," don't visit here in the next few days.
*readying umbrella*
April 20, 2009
yarb commented on the word moist
Your weather forecaster is a poet. "Moist and fairly potent"! Or a pornographer.
April 20, 2009
reesetee commented on the word moist
Yes, I was wondering which one myself, yarb!
April 20, 2009
kirby1024 commented on the word moist
There are many people who seem to have an aversion to this word, despite having no obscene connotations. For these people, hearing the word causes any number of negative feelings.
June 27, 2009
fehguy commented on the word moist
How about a piece of moist cake? There's nothing to hate about that.
November 12, 2009
Jubjub commented on the word moist
The etymologies don't help much. One gives us the impression of some sort of clean, baptismal rebirth: new, fresh. The other claims it derives from mold and mucus. So I guess the resolution is to see moist in the sense of a new and fresh, moldy mucus. (As in, "Hey that's some new mold on that there mucus!")
November 12, 2009
madmouth commented on the word moist
'Freak him, freak her, whatever your choice
I didn't come to judge, I just came to get you moist'
-Missy Elliott
August 27, 2010
25418050 commented on the word moist
simply not a fan of this word.
March 25, 2012