English word origin

Etymology of mo

From Middle English mo, from Old English mā, from Proto-Germanic *maiz, from a comparative form of Proto-Indo-European *meh₂-. Cognate with Swedish mer, Danish mer; and with Irish mó, Albanian më. See also more, most.

8 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗

In this entry · 8 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗

adj

Greater in amount, quantity, or number (of discrete objects, as opposed to more, which was applied to substances)

adv

To a greater degree. · Further, longer.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Inherited-form mentionmoenm
Inherited-form mentionmāang
Inherited-form mention*maizgem-pro
Derivation mention*meh₂-ine-pro
Cognate mentionmersv
Cognate mentionmerda
Cognate mentionmóga
Cognate mentionmësq

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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        "3": "mo"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English mo"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
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        "2": "ang",
        "3": "mā"
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    },
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      "name": "inh",
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        "2": "gem-pro",
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    },
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        "2": "mer"
      },
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    },
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        "1": "ga",
        "2": "mó"
      },
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    },
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        "1": "sq",
        "2": "më"
      },
      "expansion": "Albanian më"
    }
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    [
      "mo",
      "mo#Middle_English"
    ],
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      "mā",
      "ma#Old_English"
    ],
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      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/maiz"
    ],
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      "*meh₂-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/meh₂-"
    ],
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      "mer",
      "mer#Swedish"
    ],
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      "mer",
      "mer#Danish"
    ],
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      "mó",
      "mó#Irish"
    ],
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      "më",
      "më#Albanian"
    ],
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      "more#English"
    ],
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      "most",
      "most#English"
    ]
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Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗

symbol

month

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Clipping of month.

Inspect preserved source fields

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      "month#English"
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Source etymology 4

Original entry ↗

noun

A homosexual.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Clipping of homo, itself a short form of homosexual.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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Source etymology 5

Original entry ↗

adj

Alternative form of mo' (“more”).

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Non-rhotic pronunciation of more. Only coincidentally similar to sense 1 above. Compare fo' (“for; four”), ho (“whore”).

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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Source etymology 6

Original entry ↗

noun

A moustache.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Clipping of moustache.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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    [
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Source etymology 7

Original entry ↗

noun

A molester.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Clipping.

Inspect preserved source fields

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Source etymology 8

Original entry ↗

noun

A moron.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Clipping.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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Source etymology 9

Original entry ↗

num

The cardinal number occurring after el gro el do el (↋↋↋) and before mo one (1001) in a duodecimal system. Written 1000, decimal value 1728.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From mil, by analogy with do and gro.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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Where this record stops

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An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for mo →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger

Machine-source provenance

Source SHA-256: 5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run: 73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID: w-bW8