noun
mop
mop
noun
1
A cleaning tool with a long handle and a bundle of absorbent strands, used for washing floors.
"She grabbed a mop to clean up the spilled juice."
2
A thick, untidy head of hair.
"He pushed his mop of curly hair out of his eyes."
verb
1
To clean a surface with a mop, or to wipe something up.
"He mopped the kitchen floor after dinner."
"She mopped her brow with a handkerchief in the heat."
How to Use Mop
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishThe floor-cleaning tool (or the action of using it), or informally, a messy head of hair.
Common pairings
mop the floor
a mop of hair
mop up
Word Forms
mopped past tense, mopped past tense, mops plural, mops plural, mops singular, mops singular
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Etymology
From Middle English mappe, probably ultimately from Latin mappa, "napkin, cloth" — the same root as "map" and "napkin."