I. ˈmō]rə, ˈmȯ] noun
( plural mo·rae ]ˌrē ; or moras )
Etymology: Latin, literally, delay — more at moratory
1. Roman & civil law : delay in the performance of an obligation ; especially : culpable delay
2.
a. : the minimal unit of quantitative measure in temporal prosodic systems equivalent in the time value to an average short syllable
b. : such a unit used in linguistic analysis especially with reference to vowel quantity
II. noun
or mor·ra ˈmȯrə
( -s )
Etymology: Italian
: an Italian game in which a player extends a number of fingers of his hand in an attempt to match the number of fingers simultaneously extended by his opponent
the little singing girls playing mora — Joseph Hergesheimer
III. mōˈrä noun
( -s )
Etymology: Hindi moṛhā
India : a low wicker stool or footstool
IV. ˈmōrə, ˈmȯrə\ noun
Etymology: New Latin, perhaps modification of Tupi moiratinga, from moira tree + tinga white
1.
a. capitalized : a small genus of tall half-evergreen forest trees (family Leguminosae) of northern So. America that are often included in a closely related genus ( Dimorphandra )
b. -s : any tree of the genus Mora ; especially : a tall buttressed tree ( Mora excelsa or Dimorphandra mora ) that often grows in nearly pure stands on alluvial lands chiefly of British Guiana and Trinidad and that yields a strong heavy wood which is highly resistant to dry rot and to termite injury and is used extensively for railway ties, heavy construction, and in shipbuilding
c. -s : the wood of the British Guiana mora
2. -s : fustic 1