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View usage for: (mɒθbɔːl, US mɔːθ-) Word forms: plural, 3rd person singular presenttense mothballs, present participle mothballing, past tense, past participle mothballed1. countable nounA mothball is a small ball made of a special chemical, which you can put among clothes or blankets in order to keep moths away. 2. verbIf someone in authority mothballs a plan, factory, or piece of equipment, they decide to stop developing or using it, perhaps temporarily. [journalism] ...the decision to mothball the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant, for safety and politicalreasons. [VERB noun] The shuttle programme has now been mothballed to save money. [VERB noun] mothball in British English (ˈmɒθˌbɔːl) noun1. Also called: camphor ball a small ball of camphor or naphthalene used to repel clothes moths in stored clothing, blankets, etc 2. put in mothballs verb (transitive)3. to prepare (a ship, aircraft, etc) for a long period of storage by sealing all openings with plastic to prevent corrosion 4. to take (a factory, plant, etc) out of operation but maintain it so that it can be used in the future 5. to postpone work on (a project, activity, etc) mothball in American English (ˈmɔθˌbɔl) noun1. a small ball of naphthalene or, sometimes, camphor, the fumes of which repel moths, as from woolens, furs, etc. verb transitive2. to store with protective covering or set aside indefinitely for possible future use adjective3. in storage or reserve a mothball fleet Idioms: in (or out of) mothballs Examples of 'mothball' in a sentencemothball |