moth-eaten

1. 1.

   showing signs of wear and tear

   “a ratty old overcoat”

   “shabby furniture”

   “an old house with dirty windows and tatty curtains”

   Synonymsrattyshabbytatty

   Similarworn
2. 2.

   worn or eaten away by (or as if by) moths

   “moth-eaten blankets”

   Synonymsmothy

   Similarworn
3. 3.

   lacking originality or spontaneity; no longer new

   “moth-eaten theories about race”

   “stale news”

   Synonymscoldstaledusty

   Similarunoriginal

Questions about moth-eaten

What does moth-eaten mean?

moth-eaten means "showing signs of wear and tear". That is the primary sense; the word has 3 in total, listed in full on this page.

How many syllables are in moth-eaten?

moth-eaten has 4 syllables: mo-th-e-a-ten. The stress falls on "th-e".

What is another word for moth-eaten?

Close synonyms include ratty, shabby, tatty, mothy, cold. Each sense on this page lists its own synonyms, because a word with several meanings rarely has one substitute that works for all of them.

Is moth-eaten a common word?

moth-eaten is banded "Uncommon" — turns up in careful writing rather than conversation. The band comes from how often the word appears in a large corpus of everyday English, not from an editor's impression.