misty

B1 Topic:Describing Qualities

US /ˈmɪsti/ See IPA manual

Freq #12250

Meanings

1

adj
Covered with mist; not clear because of fine water drops in the air.

It's very misty this morning; I can't see a thing.
2

adj
(Of the eyes) filled with tears.

Her eyes grew misty when she said goodbye.
3

adj
Not clear or exact; vague.

He had only a misty memory of his childhood.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 adj · covered with mist; not... foggy hazy

3 adj · not clear or exact; vague. vague dim

Word family

Forms mistiermistiestmistilymistiness

Derived forms mistilymisty-eyedmistyishunmisty

Related forms dusty missymistifymistiness

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

misty rain
very fine rain that hangs in the air like mist

Adjective + noun

Etymology

From Middle English misty, mysty, misti, from Old English mistiġ (“misty, dark”), from Proto-West Germanic *mistig (“misty”), equivalent to mist + -y. Cognate with Scots misty, mistie (“misty”), West Frisian mistich (“misty, foggy”), Dutch mistig (“misty, foggy”), German Low German mistig (“foggy”).

misty Middle English mistiġ Old English *mistig Proto-West Germanic

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Describing Qualities

External links

# misty

**Type:** Word
**Level:** B1
**Part of speech:** adj
**IPA (US):** /ˈmɪsti/
**Frequency rank:** 12250

## Meanings
1. Covered with mist; not clear because of fine water drops in the air.
2. (Of the eyes) filled with tears.
3. Not clear or exact; vague.

## Examples
- It's very misty this morning; I can't see a thing.
- Her eyes grew misty when she said goodbye.
- He had only a misty memory of his childhood.

## Derived Forms
- mistily
- misty-eyed
- mistyish
- unmisty

## Related Forms
- dusty
- missy
- mistify
- mistiness

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: misty
- Root: mistiġ
- Root: *mistig

## Etymology
From Middle English misty, mysty, misti, from Old English mistiġ (“misty, dark”), from Proto-West Germanic *mistig (“misty”), equivalent to mist + -y. Cognate with Scots misty, mistie (“misty”), West Frisian mistich (“misty, foggy”), Dutch mistig (“misty, foggy”), German Low German mistig (“foggy”).

## AI Etymology
Misty comes from Middle English misty, mysty, misti, from Old English mistiġ (“misty, dark”), from Proto-West Germanic *mistig (“misty”), equivalent to mist + -y. Cognate with Scots misty, mistie (“misty”), West Frisian mistich (“misty, foggy”), Dutch mistig (“misty, foggy”), German Low German mistig (“foggy”). In present-day English its meanings include covered with mist; not clear because of fine water drops in the air, filled with tears, and not clear or exact; vague. The historical chain runs through misty (Middle English), mistiġ (Old English), and *mistig (Proto-West Germanic). Related and derived forms include dusty, missy, mistify, and mistily.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities

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