mound

¹

[mound]

noun

1. a natural elevation of earth; a hillock or knoll.

2. an artificial elevation of earth, as for a defense work or a dam or barrier; an embankment.

3. a heap or raised mass.

   a mound of papers;

   a mound of hay.

4. Baseball.,  the slightly raised ground from which the pitcher delivers the ball.

5. an elevation formed of earth, sand, stones, etc., especially over a grave or ruins.

6. a tumulus or other raised work of earth dating from a prehistoric or long-past period.

verb (used with object)

1. to form into a mound; heap up.

2. to furnish with a mound of earth, as for a defense.

mound

²

[mound]

noun

1. a globe topped with a cross that symbolizes power and constitutes part of the regalia of an English sovereign.

mound

¹

/ maʊnd /

noun

1. a raised mass of earth, debris, etc

2. any heap or pile

   a mound of washing

3. a small natural hill

4. archaeol another word for barrow 2

5. an artificial ridge of earth, stone, etc, as used for defence

verb

1. (often foll by up) to gather into a mound; heap

2. (tr) to cover or surround with a mound

   to mound a grave

mound

²

/ maʊnd /

noun

1. heraldry a rare word for orb

Other Word Forms

• unmounded adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of mound¹

First recorded in 1505–15; of obscure origin; noun “hedge or fence used as a boundary or protection,” verb “to enclose with a fence”; compare Old English mund “hand,” hence “protection, protector”; cognate with Old Norse mund “hand,” Middle Dutch mond “protection”

Origin of mound²

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English mounde, mundie, from Old French monde, munde, from Latin mundus “world”

Word History and Origins

Origin of mound¹

C16: earthwork, perhaps from Old English mund hand, hence defence: compare Middle Dutch mond protection

Origin of mound²

C13 (meaning: world, C16: orb): from French monde, from Latin mundus world

Example Sentences

Six months of the city's all-out bin strike and the space is still being used to store a mound of recycling the council is unable to collect.

From BBC

First is the palace; next is a mysterious aristocrat known only as the Griffin Warrior; then comes exploration of beehive-shaped burial mounds; and, finally, artistic production in provinces around Pylos.

From Los Angeles Times

On Tuesday it was Sheehan’s turn on the mound and he set down the first 15 Rockies in order, becoming the third Dodger starter in four games to take a no-hitter into the sixth inning.

From Los Angeles Times

I’ve stood over sheet pans on Sunday afternoons, roasting broccoli until the kitchen smelled faintly of sulfur, portioning out tidy mounds of chicken and rice into identical little plastic containers.

From Salon

And it ended with the Dodgers in a celebratory postgame line, trading victorious high-fives near the mound.

From Los Angeles Times