as in to dismantle
to stop using (something) while keeping it to be possibly used in the future
Many navy ships were mothballed after the war.
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Recent Examples of mothball
The two Karuizawa casks (#6195 and #888) in question were distilled in 1999, a year before the distillery was mothballed, and each is expected to yield about 420 bottles.
—
Jonah Flicker, Robb Report, 11 Mar. 2026
Some 1,000 construction workers were laid off as the Gateway Development Commission mothballed the project.
—Evan Simko-Bednarski, New York Daily News, 24 Feb. 2026
The Devil’s Place whiskey list also includes complete collections of special expressions and bottles from distilleries long mothballed.
—Don Tse, Forbes.com, 23 Jan. 2026
The company began construction twice on the development, but now has mothballed that project.
—George Avalos, Mercury News, 16 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for mothball
Jonah Flicker, Robb Report, 11 Mar. 2026
Some 1,000 construction workers were laid off as the Gateway Development Commission mothballed the project.
—Evan Simko-Bednarski, New York Daily News, 24 Feb. 2026
The Devil’s Place whiskey list also includes complete collections of special expressions and bottles from distilleries long mothballed.
—Don Tse, Forbes.com, 23 Jan. 2026
The company began construction twice on the development, but now has mothballed that project.
—George Avalos, Mercury News, 16 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for mothball
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mothball
dismantle
Verb
-
Blackmon was part of a generation of Black Americans across the South who fought in courtrooms and in the streets to dismantle barriers to voting and achieve political representation in a region scarred by the legacy of slavery and its aftermath.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
2 May 2026
-
McKinney criticized Feldstein Soto for dismantling specialized units in her office, including those focused on domestic violence and gangs and guns.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
1 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Mothball.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mothball. Accessed 7 May. 2026.
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