moth-eaten

adjective

ˈmȯth-ˌē-tᵊn How to pronounce moth-eaten (audio)
Definition of moth-eatennext
1
as in obsolete
having passed its time of use or usefulness moth-eaten scientific theories that no one's believed in ages

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in dilapidated
showing signs of advanced wear and tear and neglect a man who's been wearing the same moth-eaten clothes for decades

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in stereotyped
used or heard so often as to be dull an uncle who tells the same moth-eaten stories every Thanksgiving

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for moth-eaten
  1. obsolete
  2. dilapidated
  3. stereotyped
  4. archaic
  5. neglected
  6. tired
  7. antiquated
  8. hackneyed
Adjective
  • My role as documentarian, gatekeeper, and distributor of memories was becoming obsolete.
    — Derek C. Blasberg, Vanity Fair, 7 July 2026
  • But after a century, changing technology had rendered the works obsolete.
    — Jeff Chu, Travel + Leisure, 6 July 2026
Definition of obsolete
Adjective
  • Sixteen children from the same family who were rescued from a dilapidated home in rural Ohio were living in wretched conditions with human waste all around, confined to just one room over much of the past four years, authorities said Wednesday.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 1 July 2026
  • The parents and grandparents of 16 children found living in a dilapidated house in southern Ohio were arraigned Wednesday on more than a dozen felony child endangerment charges, officials said.
    — Minyvonne Burke, NBC news, 1 July 2026
Definition of dilapidated
Adjective
  • This is a directed, stereotyped behavior in which the highest-resolution region of the somatosensory surface is brought to bear on the object requiring the most detailed analysis.
    — Scott Travers, Forbes.com, 20 May 2026
  • Latinos are a fundamental part of American history and culture, and one of the largest communities in the United States, yet their presence in Hollywood has long been limited, stereotyped, or overlooked.
    — Jazz Tangcay, Variety, 13 Apr. 2026
Definition of stereotyped
Adjective
  • The Spanish is archaic, the intonations are complicated, and the words tumble over themselves like a hard charge toward the goal posts.
    — Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 25 June 2026
  • For golf cart operators, that evolution absolutely begins by ditching archaic lead-acid relics engineered for a bygone era.
    — Malana VanTyler, USA Today, 24 June 2026
Definition of archaic
Adjective
  • Changing their environment is more reliable and more neglected.
    — Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic, Forbes.com, 19 June 2026
  • Cinematographer Guillermo Garza shoots neglected settings like fine art, embracing the grime.
    — Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 3 Apr. 2026
Definition of neglected
Adjective
  • Depredation occurs when a shark steals an angler’s catch off their line, and Florida’s fishers are tired of it.
    — Kairi Lowery, Miami Herald, 2 July 2026
  • Pugh is tired of seeing her mom suffer by no fault of her own.
    — Bryant Reed, CBS News, 2 July 2026
Definition of tired
Adjective
  • By wrapping antiquated infrastructure in agentic interfaces, these workers can unlock near-native operational efficiency without a risky, catastrophic core system overhaul.
    — Barney Krishnan, Forbes.com, 1 July 2026
  • But what, exactly, is that robot doing watching fireworks next to a little boy and a man in antiquated garb?
    — Alex Greenberger, ARTnews.com, 29 June 2026
Definition of antiquated
Adjective
  • Maybe so, but think of how badly Congress had stated those hackneyed ideas.
    — Jill Lepore, New Yorker, 4 May 2026
  • While not exactly a feminist screed, the script grants nary a free pass to the glut of hackneyed gender conventions in the golden-age canon without at least cracking a joke.
    — Naveen Kumar, Variety, 21 Apr. 2026
Definition of hackneyed
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

mothballs
moth-eaten
mother
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Cite this Entry

“Moth-eaten.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/moth-eaten. Accessed 9 Jul. 2026.

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