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
Forget drill, baby, drill; at current prices America’s drillers have been mothballing rigs at a rapid clip to preserve capital.
—
Christopher Helman, Forbes.com, 12 June 2025
The previous administration gradually mothballed most of the signage and emblems that commemorated the franchise’s three World Series championships from 2010 to 2014.
—Andrew Baggarly, New York Times, 8 June 2025
Now Kelvin had experienced a level of public humiliation on par with Jesse’s Prayer Pods, and his entire Prism project, which had become a glittering monument to himself, would have to be mothballed, too.
—Scott Tobias, Vulture, 21 Apr. 2025
Output from the mine went into a gradual decline following the War, and it was mothballed in 1996.
—David Blackmon, Forbes, 10 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for mothball
Christopher Helman, Forbes.com, 12 June 2025
The previous administration gradually mothballed most of the signage and emblems that commemorated the franchise’s three World Series championships from 2010 to 2014.
—Andrew Baggarly, New York Times, 8 June 2025
Now Kelvin had experienced a level of public humiliation on par with Jesse’s Prayer Pods, and his entire Prism project, which had become a glittering monument to himself, would have to be mothballed, too.
—Scott Tobias, Vulture, 21 Apr. 2025
Output from the mine went into a gradual decline following the War, and it was mothballed in 1996.
—David Blackmon, Forbes, 10 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for mothball
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mothball
dismantle
Verb
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Unions of federal workers including the American Federation of Government Employees; the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees; and the AFL-CIO have filed a lawsuit arguing Trump doesn't have the authority to lay off workers and dismantle agencies during a shutdown.—
Bart Jansen,
USA Today,
4 Oct. 2025
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The transformation of milk into yogurt is achieved through a tandem effort where enzymes from both the ant and the microbes collaborate to dismantle milk proteins.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
3 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Mothball.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mothball. Accessed 8 Oct. 2025.
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