moth·ball
ˈmȯth-ˌbȯl 
1
: a ball made formerly of camphor but now often of naphthalene and paradichlorobenzene and used to keep moths from clothing
2
mothballs plural
: a condition of protective storage
put the ships in mothballs after the war
also
: a state of having been rejected for further use or dismissed from further consideration
mothballed; mothballing; mothballs
1
: to deactivate (something, such as a ship) and prevent deterioration chiefly by dehumidification
2
: to withdraw from use or service and keep in reserve : put aside
Examples of mothball in a Sentence
Verb
Many navy ships were mothballed after the war.
Recent Examples on the Web
Nick Canepa, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Jan. 2024
And even this mostly excellent production betrays a faint odor of mothballs, especially in the projection-heavy scenic design of Paul Tate dePoo III, so dependent on the feel of Terry Gilliam’s original animations.
—Jesse Green, New York Times, 16 Nov. 2023
Vacant for the last three years, the building at 1080 E. Chicago St. has been in mothballs because of restrictions from an Illinois Department of Natural Resources grant the city received in 2011 to help fund the its renovation.
—Gloria Casas, Chicago Tribune, 25 July 2023
One submarine that went into mothballs was USS Stickleback, a Balao-class submarine commissioned in 1945—but quickly decommissioned in 1946.
—Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, 4 July 2023
Your grandma's favorite method is on the outs now that many experts consider the chemicals in mothballs — naphthalene or paradichlorobenzene — a health risk.
—Caroline Picard, Good Housekeeping, 30 June 2023
Clinical signs of mothball poisoning include vomiting, mothball-scented breath, pale or brown gums, weakness or lethargy, difficulty breathing, tremors, seizures, and organ failure (e.g., liver, kidneys).
—Jesse Leavenworth, courant.com, 31 Jan. 2022
By choosing to shake the mothballs off the gown in Season 2, Carrie gets to reclaim it as a symbol of empowerment and rebirth.
—Patrick Ryan, USA TODAY, 22 June 2023
In the meantime, showrunners have been busy putting their projects in mothballs (to resume once the strike is over) and figuring out how to pay their teams as their deal funding is halted.
—Michael Schneider, Variety, 27 May 2023
Aaron Bateman, Foreign Affairs, 7 Mar. 2024
With its economy on a war footing and mothballed factories coming back online, Russia now is generating around 4,500 armored vehicles a year for its 470,000-person invasion force in Ukraine.
—David Axe, Forbes, 15 Feb. 2024
Don't mothball that ugly Christmas sweater just yet.
—Jenna Prestininzi, Detroit Free Press, 24 Feb. 2024
These days, the equipment that Estevez and her husband bought for their two trailers — ovens, cooking wares and more — is mothballed in their garage.
—Daniel Miller, Los Angeles Times, 23 Feb. 2024
Many filmmakers also criticized the initial decision to mothball the movie on social media.
—Wesley Stenzel, EW.com, 13 Nov. 2023
Production facilities were mothballed to comply with Covid lockdowns, and stores were shuttered, bringing in-person sales to a halt.
—Andy Hoffman, Fortune Europe, 8 Dec. 2023
The Depression-era facility, which opened in 1933 — an Art Deco icon of the Eastside — ended its tenure as L.A. County’s flagship public medical center in 2008 and was mostly mothballed.
—Rong-Gong Lin Ii, Los Angeles Times, 9 Nov. 2023
The city that has been home to Jeep since World War II largely shrugged off a six-week strike that mothballed a hulking factory with thousands of workers.
—Harriet Torry, WSJ, 2 Nov. 2023
Noun
But the Seahawks, despite finishing over .500, didn’t make the playoffs, so the Good Ship Pete was ready for mothballs.
—Nick Canepa, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Jan. 2024
And even this mostly excellent production betrays a faint odor of mothballs, especially in the projection-heavy scenic design of Paul Tate dePoo III, so dependent on the feel of Terry Gilliam’s original animations.
—Jesse Green, New York Times, 16 Nov. 2023
Vacant for the last three years, the building at 1080 E. Chicago St. has been in mothballs because of restrictions from an Illinois Department of Natural Resources grant the city received in 2011 to help fund the its renovation.
—Gloria Casas, Chicago Tribune, 25 July 2023
One submarine that went into mothballs was USS Stickleback, a Balao-class submarine commissioned in 1945—but quickly decommissioned in 1946.
—Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, 4 July 2023
Your grandma's favorite method is on the outs now that many experts consider the chemicals in mothballs — naphthalene or paradichlorobenzene — a health risk.
—Caroline Picard, Good Housekeeping, 30 June 2023
Clinical signs of mothball poisoning include vomiting, mothball-scented breath, pale or brown gums, weakness or lethargy, difficulty breathing, tremors, seizures, and organ failure (e.g., liver, kidneys).
—Jesse Leavenworth, courant.com, 31 Jan. 2022
By choosing to shake the mothballs off the gown in Season 2, Carrie gets to reclaim it as a symbol of empowerment and rebirth.
—Patrick Ryan, USA TODAY, 22 June 2023
In the meantime, showrunners have been busy putting their projects in mothballs (to resume once the strike is over) and figuring out how to pay their teams as their deal funding is halted.
—Michael Schneider, Variety, 27 May 2023
Verb
As a result, Program 437—the name of the project—was soon mothballed.
—Aaron Bateman, Foreign Affairs, 7 Mar. 2024
With its economy on a war footing and mothballed factories coming back online, Russia now is generating around 4,500 armored vehicles a year for its 470,000-person invasion force in Ukraine.
—David Axe, Forbes, 15 Feb. 2024
Don't mothball that ugly Christmas sweater just yet.
—Jenna Prestininzi, Detroit Free Press, 24 Feb. 2024
These days, the equipment that Estevez and her husband bought for their two trailers — ovens, cooking wares and more — is mothballed in their garage.
—Daniel Miller, Los Angeles Times, 23 Feb. 2024
Many filmmakers also criticized the initial decision to mothball the movie on social media.
—Wesley Stenzel, EW.com, 13 Nov. 2023
Production facilities were mothballed to comply with Covid lockdowns, and stores were shuttered, bringing in-person sales to a halt.
—Andy Hoffman, Fortune Europe, 8 Dec. 2023
The Depression-era facility, which opened in 1933 — an Art Deco icon of the Eastside — ended its tenure as L.A. County’s flagship public medical center in 2008 and was mostly mothballed.
—Rong-Gong Lin Ii, Los Angeles Times, 9 Nov. 2023
The city that has been home to Jeep since World War II largely shrugged off a six-week strike that mothballed a hulking factory with thousands of workers.
—Harriet Torry, WSJ, 2 Nov. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'mothball.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near mothball
Cite this Entry
“Mothball.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mothball. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
mothball
1 of 2 noun
moth·ball
ˈmȯth-ˌbȯl
1
: a ball (as of naphthalene) used to keep moths out of clothing
2
plural
: protective storage
a fleet put in mothballs after the war
mothball
2 of 2 verb1
: to remove a ship from use and protect from deterioration
2
: to withdraw from use or service and keep in reserve : put aside
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