mood
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: enpr: mo͞od
ipa: /muːd/
ipa: /mʉd/
rhymes: -uːd
homophone: mooed (except Scotland)
Forms: form: moods
Etymology: From Middle English mood, mode, mod, from Old English mōd (“mind,” in poetry also “heart, spirit, courage”), from Proto-West Germanic *mōd, from Proto-Germanic *mōdaz (“sense, courage, zeal, anger”), from Proto-Indo-European *moh₁-, *meh₁- (“endeavour, will, temper”). Cognate with Scots mude, muid (“mood, courage, spirit, temper, disposition”), Saterland Frisian Moud (“courage”), West Frisian moed (“mind, spirit, courage, will, intention”), Dutch moed (“courage, bravery, heart, valor”), German Low German Mood (“mind, heart, courage”), German Mut (“courage, braveness, heart, spirit”), Danish mod (“courage, heart, bravery”), Swedish mod (“courage, heart, bravery”), Icelandic móður (“wrath, grief, moodiness”), Latin mōs (“will, humour, wont, inclination, mood”), Russian сметь (smetʹ, “to dare, venture”).
Senses: examples: text: I've been in a bad mood since I was dumped by my ex-boyfriend.
text: I envy not in any moods
⁠The captive void of noble rage,
⁠The linnet born within the cage,
That never knew the summer woods: […]
ref: 1850, [Alfred, Lord Tennyson], “Canto XXVII”, in In Memoriam, London: Edward Moxon, […], →OCLC, page 44:
synonyms: composure
humor
spirit
temperament
glosses: A mental or emotional state, composure.
examples: text: Whatever the mood of her music, funky or romantic, upbeat or blue, sophisticated or simple, her fans get the message. And as long as the word comes from Natalie, they adore it, turning every one of her albums to gold or platinum.
ref: 1979, Judith Glassman, The Year in Music, 1979, →ISBN:
glosses: Emotional character (of a work of music, literature, or other art).
examples: text: He's in a mood with me today.
text: Rath was clearly in a mood, and only Jay could fix that. They found Carver first. Rath was even less amused to see Carver in the drill room than he had been to find Duster. He grabbed Carver with his free hand, and dragged him out.
ref: 2010, Michelle West, City of Night: A Novel of the House War, Penguin, →ISBN:
text: Joel was obviously in a mood, and if he was going to start yelling, Alex would rather be alone. “What did I do this time?” “It's more what you didn't do, idiot.”
ref: 2018, Catherine Lievens, Beacon in the Darkness, eXtasy Books, →ISBN, page 93:
synonyms: huff
pet
temper
antonyms: good humour
good mood
good spirits
glosses: A sullen, gloomy or angry mental state; a bad mood.
examples: text: I'm not in the mood for running today.
text: Paul: Shield practice? Gurney, we had shield practice this morning. I'm not in the mood.
Gurney: Not in the mood? Mood's a thing for cattle and loveplay, not fighting.
ref: 1984, 13:10 from the start, in Dune (Science Fiction), →OCLC:
text: "The Placer SPCA brings by some kittens and puppies, and I do my best to get everyone tipsy and in a donating mood."
ref: 2018, Rebecca Chastain, A Fistful of Frost, Mind Your Muse Books, →ISBN:
synonyms: huff
frame of mind
glosses: A disposition to do something, a state of mind receptive or disposed to do something.
examples: text: A good politician senses the mood of the crowd.
text: This was the mood that led him to deny to Mainstream, the successor to the New Masses , permission to reprint “Reading, Writing, and the Rackets.” This was the mood that, when he was invited to a meeting to draft a letter of protest […]
ref: 1994, Kenneth Fearing, Complete Poems, page xxvi:
text: By the early 1970s, more than 50,000 American deaths and the accompanying failed foreign-policy objectives had changed the country's mood.
ref: 2010, Richard J. Murnane, John B. Willett, Methods Matter, Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 8:
synonyms: vibe
glosses: A prevalent atmosphere, attitude, or feeling.
examples: text: “I'm only here for a night. I'm road tripping with a friend and he decided we needed a queer bar, stat.” “Oh, that's a whole mood.”
ref: 2019, Kris Ripper, Runaway Road Trip: (A Definitely-Not-Romantic Adventure):
text: To borrow an idiom from the extremely online, late Godard is a mood.
ref: 2019, A.O. Scott, “'The Image Book' Review: Godard Looks at Violence, and Movies”, in The New York Times:
text: […] For academics, not being familiar with new phrases that your students cofindently wield is a whole mood. […]
ref: 2020, Birgit Breidenbach, Aesthetic and Philosophical Reflections on Mood: Stimmung and Modernity, Routledge, →ISBN:
text: He'd drawn a variety of designs on the white rubber toes. “Nice shoes,” I said. “Likewise,” he said, glancing down at my rockabilly-red peep toe pumps. “Those kicks are a whole-ass mood.” Whether Steven liked them on me or might like to […]
ref: 2020, Cynthia St. Aubin, Love Bites, Oliver-Heber Books:
text: I think I can speak for us all when I say this tee is a MOOD. So yeah, anyways, I'm gonna need 10 of these—TYVM.
ref: 2024 October 8, Megan Uy, Tarah-Lynn Saint-Elien, “65+ Fall Prime Day Fashion Deals Your Closet Is Begging You to Shop”, in Cosmopolitan:
synonyms: big mood
glosses: A familiar, relatable feeling, experience, or thing.
Derived terms: bemood
commissive mood
in the mood
irrealis mood
mood board
mood booster
mood disorder
moodish
moodless
moodlet
mood light
mood lighting
mood message
mood music
mood piece
mood reading
mood ring
moodscape
moodsetter
mood stabiliser
mood stabilizer
mood swing
mood-thought
moodwise
moody
overmoody
potential mood
prohibitive mood
realis mood
seasonal mood disorder
tholemod
with main and mood
Related terms: ambiance
ambience
atmosphere