moor

1 of 3

noun (1)

ˈmu̇r 

1

chiefly British : an expanse of open rolling infertile land

2

: a boggy area

especially : one that is peaty and dominated by grasses and sedges

moor

2 of 3

verb

moored; mooring; moors

transitive verb

: to make fast with or as if with cables, lines, or anchors : anchor

intransitive verb

1

: to secure a boat by mooring : anchor

2

: to be made fast

Moor

3 of 3

noun (2)

ˈmu̇r 

1

: one of the Arab and Berber conquerors of Spain

2

: berber

Moorish

ˈmu̇r-ish 

adjective

Synonyms

Noun (1)

• campo
• champaign
• down(s)
• grassland
• heath
• lea
• ley
• llano
• pampa
• plain
• prairie
• savanna
• savannah
• steppe
• tundra
• veld
• veldt

Verb

• anchor
• catch
• clamp
• fasten
• fix
• hitch
• secure
• set

Examples of moor in a Sentence

Noun (1)

as she wanders the windswept moor, the novel's heroine vows that she will never marry the vicar

a mysterious figure who was said to have haunted the moors of southwest England

Verb

We found a harbor and moored the boat there for the night.

The boat was moored alongside the dock.

We need to find a place to moor for the night.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

In 2003, Piet Oudolf, whose subtly layered plantings of grasses and unusual shrubs give Manhattan’s High Line its shimmering magic, created a dark earth pathway that snakes through the property, with banks of thistles and echinacea Julia rising like steep heather moors on either side. —Hamish Bowles, Vogue, 19 Mar. 2024

This 1,293-square-mile reserve, with its meadows, peat bogs, moors, rivers and forests that are home to butterflies, otters and birds, looks like a location out of a fairy tale. —Catherine Garcia, theweek, 25 Jan. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English mor, from Old English mōr; akin to Old High German muor moor

Verb

Middle English moren; akin to Middle Dutch meren, maren to tie, moor

Noun (2)

Middle English More, from Anglo-French, from Latin Maurus inhabitant of Mauretania

First Known Use

Noun (1)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Noun (2)

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

moor

1 of 3 noun

ˈmu̇(ə)r 

: a boggy area

especially : one that is peaty and dominated by grasses and sedges

moor

2 of 3 verb

: to fasten in place with cables, lines, or anchors

moor a boat

moorage

-ij

noun

Moor

3 of 3 noun

ˈmu̇(ə)r 

: one of a North African people that conquered Spain in the 8th century and ruled until 1492

Moorish

-ish 

adjective

Etymology

Noun

Old English mōr "an area of open and wet wasteland"

Verb

Middle English moren "to fasten (a boat) in place"

Noun

Middle English More "Moor," from early French More (same meaning), from Latin Maurus "a person from Mauretania (a country in Africa)"