mound

See also: Mound

English

Etymology

From earlier meaning "hedge, fence", from Middle English mound, mund (“protection, boundary, raised earthen rampart”), from Old English mund (“hand, hand of protection, protector, guardianship”), from Proto-Germanic *mundō (“hand”), *munduz (“protection, patron”), from Proto-Indo-European *mh₂-nt-éh₂ (“the beckoning one”), from *(s)meh₂- (“to beckon”).

Cognate with Old Frisian mund (“guardianship”), Old High German munt (“hand, protection”) (German Mündel (“ward”), Vormund (“a guardian”)), Old Norse mund (“hand”) (Icelandic mund), Middle Dutch mond (“protection”), Latin manus (“hand”), Ancient Greek μάρη (márē, “hand”).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /maʊnd/
Audio (AU) (file)
Rhymes: -aʊnd

Noun

Mounds of salt

mound (plural mounds)

An artificial hill or elevation of earth; a raised bank; an embankment thrown up for defense
Synonyms: bulwark, rampart
A natural elevation appearing as if thrown up artificially; a regular and isolated hill, hillock, or knoll.
(baseball) Elevated area of dirt upon which the pitcher stands to pitch.
The pitcher was waiting at the mound.
A ball or globe forming part of the regalia of an emperor or other sovereign. It is encircled with bands, enriched with precious stones, and surmounted with a cross.
(US, vulgar, slang) The mons veneris.
(obsolete, anatomy, measurement, figuratively) A hand.
(obsolete) A protection; restraint; curb.
(obsolete) A helmet.
(obsolete) Might; size.

Synonyms

(part of regalia): globus cruciger, globe, orb

Derived terms

Mound City
Moundsville
shaftmound

Translations

artificial elevation of earth

Armenian: թումբ (hy) (tʿumb)
Bulgarian: насип (bg) m (nasip)
Catalan: mota (ca) f, túmul (ca) m
Chinese:
Mandarin: 土堆 (zh) (tǔduī), 堆 (zh) (duī)
Dutch: terp (nl) m
Esperanto: teramaso
Finnish: keko (fi), kasa (fi), valli (fi), penkka (fi)
French: butte (fr) f, monticule (fr) m
Galician: mámoa f, meda f
Georgian: ყორღანი (q̇orɣani)
German: Erdhügel (de) m, Erdwall (de) m
Greek:
Ancient: χῶμα n (khôma)
Irish: tulach f, mullóg f
Italian: terrapieno (it) m, tumulo (it) m, cumulo (it) m, monticello m, tumulo (it) m, motta (it) f, montarozzo m
Japanese: 塚 (ja) (つか, tsuka), マウンド (ja) (maundo)
Latin: tumulus m
Maori: toropuke
Mongolian: please add this translation if you can
Navajo: dah yiskʼid
Persian: تپه‎ (fa) (tappe), کومه‎ (fa) (kume)
Plautdietsch: Humpel m
Polish: kopiec (pl) m
Portuguese: pilha (pt) f, monte (pt) m, cômoro (pt) m
Russian: на́сыпь (ru) f (násypʹ), холм (ru) m (xolm)
Spanish: túmulo (es) m, montículo (es) m
Turkish: höyük (tr), öbek (tr), yığın (tr)
Ugaritic: 𐎚𐎍 (tl)
Venetian: chipa (vec) f
Walloon: hopea (wa) m, moncea (wa) m
Welsh: twmpath (cy) m, crug m

natural elevation

Bulgarian: могила (bg) f (mogila)
Chinese:
Mandarin: 丘 (zh) (qiū)
Dutch: heuvel (nl)
Esperanto: altaĵeto
Finnish: kukkula (fi), kumpu (fi), kumpare (fi)
French: tertre (fr) m
Galician: toutelo m
German: Hügel (de) m
Italian: collinetta f, poggio (it) m, monticello m, tumulo (it) m, motta (it) f
Japanese: 塚 (ja) (つか, tsuka)
Kapampangan: punsu
Norwegian:
Nynorsk: haug m
Persian: تپه‎ (fa) (tappe)
Plautdietsch: Humpel m
Portuguese: monte (pt) m
Romanian: movilă (ro) f
Russian: курга́н (ru) m (kurgán), холм (ru) m (xolm)
Spanish: montículo (es) m
Turkish: tepecik (tr), tümsek (tr)
Vietnamese: gò (vi), ụ, đụn (vi)
Walloon: tiene (wa) m, tier (wa) m, croupet (wa) m

baseball term

Finnish: syöttökumpu
French: monticule (fr) m
Japanese: マウンド (ja) (maundo)
Spanish: montículo (es) m, base (es) m

part of regalia

Finnish: valtakunnanomena (fi)
Polish: jabłko (pl) n
Russian: держава (ru) f (deržava)
Spanish: orbe (es) m

vulva — see vulva

Verb

mound (third-person singular simple present mounds, present participle mounding, simple past and past participle mounded)

(transitive) To fortify with a mound; add a barrier, rampart, etc. to.
(transitive) To force or pile into a mound or mounds.
He mounded up his mashed potatoes so they left more space on the plate for the meat.
(intransitive) To form a mound.
- 2011, Rick Hansen, Leadership and The Art of Surfing (page xi)
  When a wave mounds on the outside and takes its shape, a surfer quickly paddles to the peak, positions himself in its evolving momentum, swings his board around, aligns with the peak, and thrusts himself into its cascading shape.

Synonyms

(fortify with a mound): bank, bank up, bulwark, rampart
(pile into mounds): heap up, pile; see also Thesaurus:pile up

Derived terms

amound

Translations

fortify with a mound

French: butter (fr)

to pile into mounds

Bulgarian: натрупвам (bg) (natrupvam)
Finnish: kasata (fi)
Italian: accumulare (it), ammucchiare (it)
Portuguese: amontoar (pt), empilhar (pt)
Spanish: apilar (es), amontonar (es)

Anagrams

Mudon, Mundo

Middle English

Noun

mound

Alternative form of mund