mount

1 of 2

verb

mounted; mounting; mounts

intransitive verb

1

: rise, ascend

… the smoke mounting straight into the air from every farm and cottage.

—Robert Louis Stevenson

2

: to increase in amount or extent

expenses began to mount

3

: to get up on something above the level of the ground

especially : to seat oneself (as on a horse) for riding

transitive verb

1

a

: to go up : climb

mounted the stairs/ladder

b(1)

: to seat or place oneself on

mounting their horses

mounted the stage

(2)

: to climb on top of for copulation

2

a

: to lift up : raise

b(1)

: to put or have in position

mount artillery

(2)

: to have as equipment

c(1)

: to organize and equip (an attacking force)

mount an army

(2)

: to launch and carry out (something, such as an assault or a campaign)

mount an attack

mounting a serious challenge in the election

3

: to set on something that elevates

The birdhouse was mounted on a pole.

4

a

: to cause to get on a means of conveyance

b

: to furnish with animals for riding

5

: to post or set up for defense or observation

mounted some guards

6

a

: to attach to a support

mounted a diamond in the ring

The airplane's engines are mounted on the wings.

b

: to arrange or assemble for use or display

mounting photographs on the wall

7

a

: to prepare (something, such as a specimen) for examination or display

b

: to prepare and supply with materials needed for performance or execution

mount an exhibition of her paintings

mountable

ˈmau̇n-tə-bəl 

adjective

mounter noun

mounter

2 of 2

noun

mount·​er

ˈmau̇ntə(r)

plural -s

: one that mounts: such as

a

: a jewelry worker who fashions settings

b

: a worker who mounts optical lenses in frames

c

: a setter of watch jewels

d

: an assembler of radios or radio tubes

e

: a craftsman who attaches carvings and other decorations to furniture

f

: a machine for attaching or inserting small pieces of paper or film in or to a punched card

Synonyms of mount

Verb

• increase
• rise
• accelerate
• climb
• expand
• swell

Examples of mount in a Sentence

Verb

Their troubles have continued to mount.

The pressure mounted as the crisis continued.

The cowboy mounted his horse and then quickly dismounted.

She mounted her bicycle and rode away.

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

The United States has imposed travel bans on more than 100 Nicaraguan officials and relatives, intensifying pressure on President Daniel Ortega and his co-president wife, Rosario Murillo, over a mounting record of human rights abuses. —Los Angeles Times, 9 June 2026

After Montreal pulled out, costs kept mounting for the two other Canadian host cities, Toronto and Vancouver. —Luke Cyphers, Sportico.com, 8 June 2026

Firefighters mounted an aggressive attack when the blaze first sparked, with officials dispatching 19 fire engines from Oceanside and neighboring fire agencies, and Cal Fire sending two air tankers out of Hemet. —Teri Figueroa, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 June 2026

In the summer of 2022, feminist and antifascist groups mounted a campaign to deplatform Tate, and he was ejected from mainstream social media. —Heidi Blake, New Yorker, 8 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English mounten, monten "to rise up, ascend, get up onto (a horse), add up (to)," borrowed from Anglo-French monter, munter (transitive) "to climb (something), get up onto (a horse), add up to, set up, prepare," (intransitive) "to go upward, get on horseback, go up in the world, rise in intensity" (also continental Old & Middle French), going back to Vulgar Latin *montāre, derivative of Latin mont-, mons "mountain, hill" — more at mount entry 1

First Known Use

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Rhymes for mount

• count
• fount
• account
• amount
• discount
• dismount
• recount
• remount
• seamount
• surmount
• rediscount
• subaccount

Kids Definition

mount

1 of 3 noun

ˈmau̇nt 

: mountain

—used especially before an identifying name

Mount Everest

mount

2 of 3 verb

1

a

: rise entry 1 sense 5a, ascend

b

: to go up : climb

mount a ladder

2

: to get up onto something

mount a platform

3

: to furnish with riding animals or vehicles

mounted infantry

4

: to increase rapidly in amount

mounting debts

5

: to prepare for use, examination, or display especially by fastening in position on a support

mount a picture on cardboard

mount a specimen

6

: to furnish with scenery and costumes : stage

7

: to place in position for the purpose of defense or observation

mounted some guards

mount

3 of 3 noun

1

: frame, support: as

a

: a jewelry setting

b

: a glass slide on which objects are placed for examination under a microscope

2

: saddle horse

Etymology

Noun

from Old English munt and early French mont, both meaning "mount" and both from Latin mont-, mons (same meaning)

Verb

Middle English mounten "to increase, rise," from early French monter (same meaning), derived from Latin mont-, mons "hill, mount"

Medical Definition

mount

1 of 2 transitive verb

ˈmau̇nt 

: to prepare for examination or display

specifically : to place (an object) on a slide for microscopic examination

mount a specimen

mount

2 of 2 noun

1

: a glass slide with its accessories on which objects are placed for examination with a microscope

2

: a specimen mounted on a slide for microscopic examination