I. ˈmau̇nt noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English munt, mont, mount, partly from Old English munt, from Latin mont-, mons; partly from Old French mont, from Latin mont-, mons; akin to Old Norse mœnir ridgepole, mœna to project, Latin minari to project, threaten, Welsh mynydd mountain, Avestan fra manyente they get a head start, mati- promontory; basic meaning: mountain
1.
a. : a lofty promontory : mountain ; specifically : a high usually more or less conical detached hill rising from a landscape
Mount Vesuvius
b. : a lofty position : vantage point
mystics … returned from the mount of vision — J.S.Bixler
c. heraldry : a hill proper vert in base
2.
a. archaic : a protective earthwork : rampart
b. obsolete : cavalier 1
3.
a. : an artificial elevation : mound
mount in the background is the icehouse — National Geographic
b. obsolete : an elevated area in a garden that affords a view of the surrounding countryside
have a mount of some pretty height … to look abroad into the fields — Francis Bacon
4. obsolete : a lending agency : bank , pawnbroker — compare mont-de-pié t é
5. usually capitalized : a small protrusion of flesh on the palm of the hand especially at the base of a finger that is held by palmists to indicate predominant traits and degrees of temperament
the absence of Mounts … indicates the lack of the virtues represented by that Mount — Josef Ranald
— see lower mars , mount of apollo , mount of jupiter , mount of luna , mount of mercury , mount of saturn , mount of venus , upper mars
II. verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English mounten, from Middle French monter, from (assumed) Vulgar Latin montare, from Latin mont-, mons mountain
intransitive verb
1.
a. : to become greater in amount or extent : increase
weekends when passenger volume mounts sharply — W.A.Howe
costs of operation … are continually mounting — C.F.Robinson
you know how those storage bills mount up — Berton Roueché
b. : to reach an ultimate amount or extent : total
the cost of champagne … is liable to mount up to a couple of pounds per head — English Digest
2.
a. : to wing upward : soar
the lark … mounting from the lea — William Allingham
the soul mounting toward the eternal forms — Bernard DeVoto
b. : to make or appear to make a steep ascent : climb
mounting ivy
the narrow road mounts to higher levels — American Guide Series: Florida
astride these promontories are … residential sections, and even some of the business areas have mounted partway — American Guide Series: Minnesota
c. : to reach upward : tower
the skyscraper mounts through the dusk to a winking red light on top
d. : to move upward : rise
hid her face on the bounteous breast that mounted to her — George Meredith
e. : to surge up and suffuse the face
blushes mount to her cheeks — Upton Sinclair
f. : to attain greater height or magnitude : grow
a vine, remarkable for its tendency … to mass and mount — Willa Cather
a mounting economic and political problem — Gordon Walker
g. : to become aroused or amplified : kindle , intensify
mount to high moral indignation — M.R.Cohen
a sense of mounting excitement — T.B.Costain
h. : couple I 1
meet and mount like stray dogs in the street — George Barker
3.
a. : to become promoted : advance
younger brother … proposed to mount over the head of the elder by marrying the late King's widow — Edith Sitwell
b. archaic : to reach back through the years
an antiquity which mounts up to the eighth century of our era — J.M.Jephson
4.
a. : to seat oneself upon a means of conveyance (as a horse)
puts his foot in the stirrup and mounts
mounted and rode off in a cloud of dust
b. : to become elevated by or secured to a support
mount on French heels when you go to the ball — London Magazine
the transmission mounts crosswise in the vehicle — Principles of Automotive Vehicles
5. slang : to ascend the witness stand : testify
their price is five shillings for what they call mounting — George Parker
transitive verb
1.
a. : to climb or appear to climb : ascend
mounted a short flight of steps — W.B.Furlong
the town mounts the hills — Claudia Cassidy
specifically : to take one's place on a raised structure
mount a pulpit
mount the judicial bench
b. obsolete : to soar into
did He … not only mount the firmament but ascend the heaven of heavens — James Hervey
c. archaic : to scale for the purpose of assault
first to mount the breach — Sir Walter Scott
2.
a. : to lift up : elevate
hedgehogs … mount their pricks at my footfall — Shakespeare
had the brilliant idea of mounting enormous masts … down the center of the roadway — H.V.Morton
clouds … mounting thunderheads in the north — Norman Mailer
specifically : to raise (a shotgun) to the shoulder preparatory to firing
b. : to set on something that elevates
a cluster of outbuildings … each mounted on poles — Mary Kingsley
c. archaic : to raise in esteem or spirituality : exalt
whom his tenth epic mounts to fame — Edward Young
this mounts my soul with more heroic fires — Francis Quarles
3.
a. : to dispose in battle array : position
on this rampart he mounted his little train of artillery — W.H.Prescott
b. : to be equipped with or have in position
a war canoe mounting 40 or more oars
a wooden stockade mounting cannon — P.M.Angle
vehicles … which can mount 105 mm. recoilless weapons — Combat Forces Journal
c.
(1) : to post for defense or observation
mounted some guards
(2) : to take up (a post of protective custody)
mount guard over the person of the emperor — A.M.Young
d.
(1) : to organize and equip (an attacking force)
the logistical support … to mount and support the operation — H.A.Jordan
(2) : to launch and carry out (an assault or campaign)
first ship specially designed for mounting helicopter assaults — A.W.Jessup
mounted 1525 effective sorties during the period — New York Times
is mounting a successful trade offensive — D.L.Cohn
4. : cover I 10a
crouching like a domestic hen that wants to be mounted — T.H.White b. 1906
5.
a. : to get on (a means of conveyance)
mount a horse
went running to mount the motorcycle — Richard Llewellyn
clouds mount the wind — Russell Lord
b. : to sit or be set upon (a means of conveyance)
mounted the tractor and rode into the barnyard
a horse would be led out and I would be mounted … upon it — O.S.J.Gogarty
c. : to furnish with a means of conveyance
wanted horses to mount his dragoons — American Guide Series: Vermont
6.
a.
(1) : to attach to a support or assemble for use
after the final polishing … the blade is ready to be mounted — L.D.Bement
the pulley shaft is mounted on large capacity ball bearings — Whitin Review
specifically : to attach to a base (as of metal or wood) and make type high (a printing plate or cut)
(2) : to attach to a backing for reinforcement or display
old Roman filet … mounted on a net foundation that would give almost invisible support to its fragile threads — advt
black satin motifs mounted on white felt — Women's Wear Daily
specifically : to glue or paste (as a sheet of paper) upon firm material in bookbinding
b. : to prepare for display: as
(1) : to frame or provide with an appropriate setting
classifying, mounting, and labeling specimens — G.O.Blough
the jeweler mounts a pearl in a ring
mount a statue on a pedestal
specifically : to place (an object) on a slide for microscopic examination
(2) : to stuff or arrange (the skin or skeleton of an animal) for exhibition especially in a natural position or attitude — compare taxidermy
mounted a group of orangutans, and then a habitat group of muskrats — Clyde Fisher
(3) : to fasten (a stamp) on the page of an album especially by use of a hinge or on a sheet of paper or cardboard for display
c.
(1) : to put on view : exhibit
one of the finest shows the museum has ever mounted — Time
specifically : to arrange (a slide) under a microscope for examination
(2) archaic : to don especially for display
mounted a fashionable greatcoat — Sporting Magazine
d. : to provide with scenery, costumes, lighting, and properties : equip for public presentation
the manner in which a play is composed, mounted and performed — Samuel Selden
a tastefully mounted television show
a beautifully mounted circus, meaning it had luster and snap and dazzle — T.W.Duncan
specifically : produce
the manager's stubborn determination to mount a Wagner opera although he had only a few leading singers to put into it — Marcia Davenport
Synonyms: see ascend , rise
III. noun
( -s )
1.
a. : an act or instance of mounting
the circus rider leaped to the horse's back in a flying mount
took pride in the spread and mount of his fame — J.L.Davis
specifically : a gymnastic maneuver consisting of a spring from the floor to a position on the apparatus
b. : coupling 1
the copulatory behavior of macaques … consists of a series of mounts — C.S.Ford & F.A.Beach
2. : frame , support : as
a. : the strips (as of wood or ivory) constituting the framework of a fan
b. : a mat that serves as a background for a picture
salon mount
c. : a jewelry setting
flexible platinum mount set with 68 round diamonds — Precious-Stone Jewelry
d. : a decorative border or detail applied to objects (as furniture, clocks, saddles) ; also : protective or functional hardware (as escutcheons or drawer pulls) of furniture — usually used in plural
a clock with ormolu mounts
e. : an undercarriage or part that fits a device for use or serves to attach an accessory
engine mount
weapons on towed or self-propelled mounts — U.S. War Dept. Technical Manual
invented a mount for a telescopic gunsight
a good lens in focusing mount — R.C.Holslag
specifically : the base upon which a printing plate or cut is mounted to make it type high
f. : a hinge, card, or acetate envelope for mounting a stamp for display (as in an album)
g.
(1) : a glass slide with its accessories on which objects are placed for examination with a microscope
(2) : a specimen mounted on a slide for microscopic examination
h. : a piece of material used for reinforcement or backing
mount for a book cover
3.
a. : a means of conveyance
a cavalry action, with jeeps as mounts — Blair Clark
specifically : saddle horse
too many officers' mounts and not enough draft animals — F.V.W.Mason
b. : a supply of saddle horses
told me the color and the brand on every horse that was in my mount — Ross Santee
— compare string I 11c
c.
(1) : an opportunity to ride
offering an unsuspecting person a mount on a savage horse — Robert Lynd
specifically : an assignment to ride as a jockey in a race
phone is always ringing, with owners and trainers offering mounts — Allen Andrews
(2) : a horse entered in a competition