as in specks
a very small piece
there's not a mote of dirt in that woman's house
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Recent Examples of motes
Tiny bugs float in the sun like dust motes, and there are graceful flies large enough to require a runway landing.
—
John Metcalfe, Mercury News, 4 May 2026
Sunbeams through the windows illuminate floating dust motes—and, imperceptibly, microdroplets of mucus carrying the measles virus, expelled from an infected but asymptomatic child who is hopping and laughing among the others.
—Elizabeth Bruenig, The Atlantic, 12 Feb. 2026
Easily swept up by wind and carried long distances by water, these tiny motes are also exceedingly difficult to detect and almost impossible to remove from the environment.
—K. R. Callaway, Scientific American, 22 Jan. 2026
There’s a Gambit-adjacent one that has players depositing motes while killing other teams.
—Paul Tassi, Forbes.com, 30 Aug. 2025
The sensors’ small size allows seamless integration into almost any environment, while the wireless, modular design lets motes be added or removed as needed depending on the application.
—Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 6 Aug. 2025
Powering and recording signals from multiple motes will require new techniques and better signal processing.
—Eliza Strickland, IEEE Spectrum, 21 Oct. 2016
John Metcalfe, Mercury News, 4 May 2026
Sunbeams through the windows illuminate floating dust motes—and, imperceptibly, microdroplets of mucus carrying the measles virus, expelled from an infected but asymptomatic child who is hopping and laughing among the others.
—Elizabeth Bruenig, The Atlantic, 12 Feb. 2026
Easily swept up by wind and carried long distances by water, these tiny motes are also exceedingly difficult to detect and almost impossible to remove from the environment.
—K. R. Callaway, Scientific American, 22 Jan. 2026
There’s a Gambit-adjacent one that has players depositing motes while killing other teams.
—Paul Tassi, Forbes.com, 30 Aug. 2025
The sensors’ small size allows seamless integration into almost any environment, while the wireless, modular design lets motes be added or removed as needed depending on the application.
—Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 6 Aug. 2025
Powering and recording signals from multiple motes will require new techniques and better signal processing.
—Eliza Strickland, IEEE Spectrum, 21 Oct. 2016
Recent Examples of Synonyms for motes
Noun
-
Most astronomers now agree that each of these minuscule crimson specks—which bear a striking resemblance to enormous, faraway stars—actually has a burgeoning black hole at its center.—
Joseph Howlett,
Scientific American,
27 May 2026
-
As in Kourliandski’s quartet, specks and splatters of sound are interspersed with silences.—
Alex Ross,
New Yorker,
18 May 2026
Noun
-
Avoid spraying when wind speeds exceed 5 miles per hour and use a low spray pressure to increase droplet size, as larger particles are less likely to move with the wind.—
Kim Toscano,
Southern Living,
29 May 2026
-
One is a compass-like mechanism, whereby the Earth exerts a pull on magnetic particles in a bird’s upper beak that relays directional information via a large nerve in the cranium.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
28 May 2026
Noun
-
The light had a wintry grain, with flecks of color suspended in it.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
3 June 2026
-
Vermiculite, a fine, puffed, gold flecks mica, which helps with drainage.—
Arricca Elin SanSone,
Southern Living,
29 May 2026
Noun
-
Now, though, scientists have discovered bits of tissue removed from a species of sea cucumber called Psolus fabricii can keep on living indefinitely if they’re left in ordinary seawater.—
Jacek Krywko,
ArsTechnica,
29 May 2026
-
Just non-stop dribbles, counter-attacks, through balls, amazing finishes… all of football’s good bits.—
Jack Lang,
New York Times,
28 May 2026
Noun
-
That's roughly double that of many common grains like rice, which has around 4 grams per cup, and oats, which yield about 5 grams of protein per cup cooked.—
Lynn Andriani,
Martha Stewart,
30 May 2026
-
Refined grains digest quickly, leading to sharper blood sugar spikes and crashes.—
Ezekiel J. Emanuel,
CNBC,
29 May 2026
Noun
-
Fans wear ruffled shirts, eye patches and other period costume elements at concerts, which are high-energy and theatrical and adorned with skulls and crossbones, tricorn hats, and anchors.—
Sofia Goldstein,
SPIN,
2 June 2026
-
Draped over crisp salmon like in this rice bowl (mole instead of spicy mayo; radishes instead of cucs); this is a form of recipe development, sewing together patches into a colorful quilt.—
Emma Laperruque,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
1 June 2026
Noun
-
Living systems invest energy into making molecules that serve specific functions, even when those molecules are complex and harder to form.—
Gideon Yoffe,
The Conversation,
29 May 2026
-
Sodium bicarbonate neutralizes odor molecules.—
BestReviews,
Mercury News,
29 May 2026
Noun
-
The ever-expanding, replicating, and manipulating series of rooms take scraps and memories of those who pass through it, expanding into something that defies personality or ease.—
Fran Hoepfner,
Vulture,
2 June 2026
-
Like everything else that works here, Brie’s performance wrests the last scraps of freshness from a mode of filmmaking this movie knows is played out, but doesn’t have the particular strength to reinvent.—
David Ehrlich,
IndieWire,
2 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Motes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/motes. Accessed 4 Jun. 2026.
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