moulder

Meanings

1. 1
   verb

   to decay or crumble slowly, often until little remains; usually followed by away

   The sun-dried bricks began to moulder after several winters of heavy rain.

2. 2
   verb

   figurative: to remain unused or neglected while gradually deteriorating or being forgotten

   The manuscript mouldered in an archive for more than a century.

Probably formed from mould in its older sense 'loose earth or soil' + the frequentative verb suffix -er, with influence from mould meaning fungal growth; compare Norwegian dialect muldra, 'crumble.' The American spelling is molder. The verb is distinct from moulder meaning a person or machine that shapes material.

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