moat

noun

ˈmōt 

1

: a deep and wide trench around the rampart of a fortified place (such as a castle) that is usually filled with water

The moat can be crossed by a drawbridge.

2

: a channel resembling a moat (as about a seamount or for confinement of animals in a zoo)

A Bengal tiger stared at me from across the moat.

moated

ˈmō-təd 

adjective

moatlike

ˈmōt-ˌlīk 

adjective

Illustration of moat

• moat 1

Examples of moat in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Zion’s still pondering his next move when a body floats by him in the hotel moat. —Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 16 Feb. 2025

Spending alone isn’t a business model For years, the assumption in tech has been simple: that spending is a moat, and profitability will follow. —Edwin Olson, Fortune, 4 Feb. 2025

These breakthroughs sent American tech stocks into a freefall on Monday and exposed an uncomfortable truth: There might not be any moats in AI at all. —Jackie Snow, Quartz, 3 Feb. 2025

And while Nvidia's competitive moat has proved extraordinarily strong until now, there are many reasons to believe it will be eroded over time, even by AI tools developed using Nvidia chips. —Felix Salmon, Axios, 31 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English mote, from Anglo-French mote, motte mound, moat

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for moat

• bloat
• boat
• choate
• coat
• cote
• dote
• float
• gloat
• goat
• groat
• haute
• mote

Kids Definition

moat

noun

ˈmōt 

: a deep wide trench around the walls of a castle or fortress that is usually filled with water