<B>moon, </B>noun, verb.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>noun </I> <B>1. </B>a heavenly body that revolves around the earth once in about 29 1/2 days at a mean distance of 238,857 miles or 384,403 kilometers. The moon shines in the sky at night and looks bright because it reflects the sun's light. It is a natural satellite of the earth and is held in orbit by the earth's gravity. The moon's diameter is about 2,160 miles, and its volume about 1/50 that of the earth. The force of the moon's gravity on the earth causes tides in the ocean. <DD><B> 2. </B>the moon as it looks at a certain period of time. The half moon appears as a half circle, the full moon as a circle, and the old moon as a waning crescent. In technical usage, what is often called the "new moon" is properly a waxing crescent and the actual new moon is almost invisible. <DD><B> 3. </B>a lunar month; about a month or 29 1/2 days. The Indians counted time by moons. <BR> <I>Ex. A young and tender suckling--under a moon old (Charles Lamb).</I> <DD><B> 4. </B><B>=moonlight.</B> <DD><B> 5. </B>something shaped like the moon in any of its appearances. <BR> <I>Ex. a great moon of a face.</I> <DD><B> 6. </B>a satellite of any planet. <BR> <I>Ex. the moons of Jupiter.</I> <DD><B> 7. </B>an artificial earth satellite. <DD><I>v.i. </I> <B>1. </B>to wander about idly; gaze in a dreamy way. <BR> <I>Ex. to go mooning about the house and stables (Thomas Bailey Aldrich). If you moon at me in that stupid way ... I shall certainly end in an insane asylum (William Dean Howells).</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>to shine as a moon does. <DD><I>v.t. </I> <B>1. </B>to spend (time) idly. <DD><B> 2. </B>to expose (something) to the moon's rays. <BR><I>expr. <B>bark at the moon,</B> </I>to clamor or agitate to no effect. <BR> <I>Ex. Those who protested against the dictator's ruthless actions were barking at the moon, since they were few and powerless.</I> <BR><I>expr. <B>once in a blue moon.</B> </I>See under <B>blue moon.</B> noun <B>mooner.</B> adj. <B>moonlike.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="moonbeam">
<B>moonbeam, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a ray of moonlight. </DL>
<A NAME="moonbear">
<B>moon bear,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> an Asiatic black bear, so called because of the white, crescentlike mark on its chest. </DL>
<A NAME="moonblind">
<B>moon-blind, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> suffering from moon blindness. </DL>
<A NAME="moonblindness">
<B>moon blindness,</B><DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>an intermittent inflammation of the eyes in horses, usually resulting in blindness; mooneye. <DD><B> 2. </B><B>=night blindness.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="moonbow">
<B>moonbow, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a rainbow formed by moonlight; lunar rainbow. <BR> <I>Ex. Moonbows are due to the same cause as rainbows, but since the reflected light from the moon does not contain all the colors of sunlight the bow appears silver (London Times).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="mooncalf">
<B>mooncalf, </B>noun, pl. <B>-calves.</B><DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a congenital idiot. <DD><B> 2. </B>a foolish person; fool; dolt. <DD><B> 3. </B>a person who moons. <DD><B> 4. </B>(Archaic.) a monstrosity. </DL>
<A NAME="moonchild">
<B>moonchild, </B>noun, pl. <B>-children.</B><DL COMPACT><DD> a person born under the zodiacal sign of Cancer. </DL>
<B>mooneyed, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>having round, wide-open eyes, as from terror or surprise. <DD><B> 2. </B><B>=moonblind.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="moonface">
<B>moonface, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a round, moonlike face. <BR> <I>Ex. As he neared the top, he turned his happy moonface (Time).</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>an abnormal obesity of the face caused by various diseases. </DL>
<A NAME="moonfaced">
<B>moonfaced, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> having a round face like a full moon. <BR> <I>Ex. a moonfaced baby.</I> </DL>
<A NAME="moonfish">
<B>moonfish, </B>noun, pl. <B>-fishes</B> or (collectively) <B>-fish.</B><DL COMPACT><DD> any of a number of fishes that suggest the moon by the silvery or yellowish color of their body, as various carangoids, opahs, and a Mexican top minnow. </DL>
<A NAME="moonflight">
<B>moonflight, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> space flight to the moon. </DL>
<A NAME="moonflower">
<B>moonflower, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a tropical plant of the morning-glory family, having large, fragrant white flowers that open in the evening. <DD><B> 2. </B>any one of various related plants. <DD><B> 3. </B>(Especially British.) the oxeye daisy. </DL>
<A NAME="moongate">
<B>moongate, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a circular gateway through a wall, as in a Chinese temple. </DL>
<A NAME="moonglow">
<B>moonglow, </B>noun. <B>=moonlight.</B></DL>
<A NAME="moonie">
<B>Moonie, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a follower of Sun Myung Moon, born 1920, a Korean evangelist preaching a blend of fundamentalist Christianity and Eastern mysticism. </DL>
<A NAME="moonily">
<B>moonily, </B>adverb.<DL COMPACT><DD> in a moony manner. </DL>
<A NAME="mooniness">
<B>mooniness, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> moony quality or condition. </DL>
<A NAME="moonish">
<B>moonish, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>like the moon; changeable; fickle. <BR> <I>Ex. at which time would I, being but a moonish youth, ... be effeminate, changeable (Shakespeare).</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>caused by the moon. adv. <B>moonishly.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="moonjellyfish">
<B>moon jellyfish,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> the most common jellyfish, diskshaped and white or bluish, found along the Atlantic and Pacific coasts. </DL>
<A NAME="moonless">
<B>moonless, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>having no moon. <BR> <I>Ex. It is by no means improbable that Mars was originally moonless (H. C. Macpherson).</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>not lit up by the moon. <BR> <I>Ex. a moonless night.</I> </DL>
<A NAME="moonlet">
<B>moonlet, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a little moon. <BR> <I>Ex. I pledge thee in the silver horn of yonder moonlet bright (William Motherwell).</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>a small artificial earth satellite. <BR> <I>Ex. man-made moonlets circle the earth.</I> </DL>
<A NAME="moonlight">
<B>moonlight, </B>noun, adjective, verb.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>noun </I> the light of the moon. <BR> <I>Ex. Moonlight has a considerable influence on the activity of insects at night (Science News).</I> <DD><I>adj. </I> <B>1. </B>having the light of the moon; moonlit. <BR> <I>Ex. a moonlight night.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>while the moon is shining; at or by night. <BR> <I>Ex. a moonlight swim.</I> <DD><I>v.i. </I> (U.S. Informal.) to work at a second job, often at night, in order to supplement the wages earned at a regular job. <BR> <I>Ex. Workers moonlight to live on a higher plane than otherwise is possible (Chicago Daily News).</I> noun <B>moonlighter.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="moonlightflit">
<B>moonlight flit,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> (British Slang.) the action of absconding at night to escape creditors. </DL>
<A NAME="moonlighting">
<B>moonlighting, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> (U.S. Informal.) the practice of holding or working at a second job, usually at night, in addition to a regular daytime job. </DL>
<A NAME="moonlit">
<B>moonlit, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> lighted by the moon. <BR> <I>Ex. moonlit woods.</I> </DL>
<A NAME="moonman">
<B>moonman, </B>noun, pl. <B>-men.</B><DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a person skilled in or trained for moonflight. <BR> <I>Ex. Then, according to the theory, the moonmen take off, orbit, rendezvous and couple with the mother ship (Harper's).</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>a person engaged in research and other projects concerned with moonflight. </DL>
<A NAME="moonport">
<B>moonport, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a launch complex for preparing spacecraft to travel to the moon. </DL>
<A NAME="moonprobe">
<B>moon probe,</B> <B>=lunar probe.</B></DL>
<A NAME="moonquake">
<B>moonquake, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a quake or series of vibrations on the moon analogous to an earthquake. </DL>
<B>moonrise, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>the rising of the moon. <BR> <I>Ex. watching a chilly autumnal moonrise over the stubbles of the cornfield (Mrs. Humphry Ward).</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>the time when the moon rises. <BR> <I>Ex. The wolves began to howl about an hour after moonrise.</I> </DL>
<A NAME="moonrock">
<B>moonrock, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a rock sample from the moon, such as ferropseudobrookite. </DL>
<A NAME="moonsail">
<B>moonsail, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a light sail set above a skysail; moonraker. </DL>
<A NAME="moonscape">
<B>moonscape, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a view of the surface of the moon. <DD><B> 2. </B>the surface viewed. <DD><B> 3. </B>a view or landscape on earth which looks as rugged as a moonscape. </DL>
<A NAME="moonseed">
<B>moonseed, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> any climbing plant of a group having panicles of greenish-white flowers and crescent-shaped seeds, especially a variety of eastern North America grown on walls and arbors. </DL>
<A NAME="moonset">
<B>moonset, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>the setting of the moon. <DD><B> 2. </B>the time of setting of the moon. </DL>
<A NAME="moonshell">
<B>moon shell,</B><DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B><B>=moon snail.</B> <DD><B> 2. </B>the shell of this snail. </DL>
