mother

Reading level: easy

Estimated CEFR level: A1 — Beginner

Estimated from word frequency; not an official CEFR classification.

Definition

  1. noun a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
  2. noun a stringy slimy substance consisting of yeast cells and bacteria; forms during fermentation and is added to cider or wine to produce vinegar
  3. noun a term of address for an elderly woman

Etymology

From Middle English moder, from Old English mōdor, from Proto-West Germanic *mōder, from Proto-Germanic *mōdēr, from Proto-Indo-European *méh₂tēr. Doublet of Madeira, mata, mater, matrix, and matter. Some have proposed that the "dregs" sense is from Middle Dutch modder (“filth”), from Proto-Germanic *muþraz (“sediment”), but modder is not known in this meaning. On the other hand, words for "mother" have developed the secondary sense of "dregs" in several Romance and Germanic languages; compare Dutch moer, French mère de vinaigre, German Essigmutter, Italian madre, Medieval Latin māter, and Spanish madre.

In classic literature

Synonyms

female parent

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