as in dismantled
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 mothballed
The central bank gets mothballed.
—
Shawn Tully, Fortune, 8 Oct. 2025
The Lightfighter is as powerful, while much lighter than the 575-lb (260-kg) behemoths raced in the MotoE World Championship (the premier international series for electric bikes) – and the 489-lb (225-kg) e-Ducati that would have replaced them had the class not been mothballed from next year.
—New Atlas, 7 Oct. 2025
What has resulted in the first weeks of Musk’s campaign against government has been reports of veterans being fired, whole agencies mothballed—probably unconstitutionally, courts are declaring—and benefits thrown into risk.
—Philip Elliott, Time, 2 Apr. 2025
When Kar Kraft’s work on the vehicle was completed, it was shipped to Shelby American in Los Angeles for a full rebuild, then trucked back across country to Ford’s headquarters in Detroit, where it was mothballed in storage.
—Howard Walker, Robb Report, 24 Mar. 2025
In recent months, Microsoft contracted with Constellation Energy to restart Unit 1 of the Three Mile Island plant in Pennsylvania, which was mothballed 5 years ago.
—David Blackmon, Forbes, 20 Jan. 2025
The structure could be mothballed sometime next year until a plan for its reuse is determined.
—Jason Clayworth, Axios, 15 Jan. 2025
Three Mile Island’s reactor has been mothballed for five years, not just one.
—IEEE Spectrum, 2 Oct. 2024
Shawn Tully, Fortune, 8 Oct. 2025
The Lightfighter is as powerful, while much lighter than the 575-lb (260-kg) behemoths raced in the MotoE World Championship (the premier international series for electric bikes) – and the 489-lb (225-kg) e-Ducati that would have replaced them had the class not been mothballed from next year.
—New Atlas, 7 Oct. 2025
What has resulted in the first weeks of Musk’s campaign against government has been reports of veterans being fired, whole agencies mothballed—probably unconstitutionally, courts are declaring—and benefits thrown into risk.
—Philip Elliott, Time, 2 Apr. 2025
When Kar Kraft’s work on the vehicle was completed, it was shipped to Shelby American in Los Angeles for a full rebuild, then trucked back across country to Ford’s headquarters in Detroit, where it was mothballed in storage.
—Howard Walker, Robb Report, 24 Mar. 2025
In recent months, Microsoft contracted with Constellation Energy to restart Unit 1 of the Three Mile Island plant in Pennsylvania, which was mothballed 5 years ago.
—David Blackmon, Forbes, 20 Jan. 2025
The structure could be mothballed sometime next year until a plan for its reuse is determined.
—Jason Clayworth, Axios, 15 Jan. 2025
Three Mile Island’s reactor has been mothballed for five years, not just one.
—IEEE Spectrum, 2 Oct. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mothballed
dismantled
Verb
-
In September, federal agents dismantled a covert network near the United Nations in New York that contained more than 300 SIM servers and 100,000 SIM cards, according to the Secret Service.—
Bloomberg News,
Boston Herald,
19 Oct. 2025
-
At the end, every element is dismantled, the squares return to emptiness, and the streets resume their rhythm.—
Leo Barraclough,
Variety,
19 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Mothballed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mothballed. Accessed 20 Oct. 2025.
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