as in speck
a very small piece
there's not a mote of dirt in that woman's house
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of mote
In the 1996 film Twister, storm chasers played by Helen Hunt and Bill Paxton sacrifice nearly everything to let loose swarms of data-collecting motes that get sucked up into a tornado and beam data back.
—
IEEE Spectrum, 17 Aug. 2023
T’Challa’s coffin, carried by its team of all-woman warrior pallbearers—including Danai Gurira’s Okoye, showing nothing but betraying every mote of sorrow even so—is eventually relinquished to the sky, where it’s subsumed into a triangular ceremonial object and whisked off, gone forever.
—Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 8 Nov. 2022
The world’s smallest battery is smaller than a dust mote.
—Joshua Hawkins, BGR, 1 Mar. 2022
How lonely, and how far away everything is compared to that mote of dust.
—NBC News, 22 July 2021
See All Example Sentences for mote
IEEE Spectrum, 17 Aug. 2023
T’Challa’s coffin, carried by its team of all-woman warrior pallbearers—including Danai Gurira’s Okoye, showing nothing but betraying every mote of sorrow even so—is eventually relinquished to the sky, where it’s subsumed into a triangular ceremonial object and whisked off, gone forever.
—Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 8 Nov. 2022
The world’s smallest battery is smaller than a dust mote.
—Joshua Hawkins, BGR, 1 Mar. 2022
How lonely, and how far away everything is compared to that mote of dust.
—NBC News, 22 July 2021
See All Example Sentences for mote
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mote
Noun
-
When dishes air-dry, especially in a dishwasher or on a drying rack, the water evaporates, and these minerals remain on the surface, forming those unsightly white or grayish specks.—
Nafeesah Allen,
Better Homes & Gardens,
2 June 2025
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Her path had been ambitiously charted to include a refuelling stop on Howland Island, a speck between Hawaii and Australia.—
Laurie Gwen Shapiro,
New Yorker,
2 June 2025
Noun
-
The science transparency rule in the first Trump administration was intended to limit the EPA’s ability to consider epidemiologic studies like those that established the health harms from exposure to secondhand smoke and to PM2.5, fine particles often from pollution.—
H. Christopher Frey,
The Conversation,
5 June 2025
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Large particles from Sahara dust can also cause skin and eye irritation, the CDC said.—
Leah Sarnoff,
ABC News,
4 June 2025
Noun
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Santo My Palo can best be described as an otherworldly nude shade with multicolored glittery flecks suspended in the gel that reflect light for a mega-watt sparkle.—
Fiona Embleton,
Glamour,
27 May 2025
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The formula—which sparkles in the bottle with rose-gold flecks of glitter—is made more indulgent yet with its gourman, coconut-milk scent.—
Jenny Berg,
Vogue,
23 May 2025
Noun
-
From its cute-fake soundstage-town setting to the authoritative yet chummy voice-over narration (courtesy of Nick Offerman), The Life of Chuck works doggedly to give you the warm fuzzies—and a little bit of that fuzz goes a long way.—
Stephanie Zacharek,
Time,
6 June 2025
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Not only is sitting on the potty all by yourself a little bit scary, but nobody likes putting play to a stop to use the potty, either.—
Elisabeth Sherman,
Parents,
6 June 2025
Noun
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Women can supplement magnesium, but Messer says the best food sources of it are nuts (especially almonds and cashews), pumpkin and chia seeds, whole grains and dark chocolate.—
Daryl Austin,
USA Today,
7 June 2025
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Hemp's federal legalization would apply to products such as grains, oil, nuts, fiber and some edible leaves but not cannabinoid products.—
James Bickerton,
MSNBC Newsweek,
6 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Mote.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mote. Accessed 16 Jun. 2025.
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