I’ve always thought that mold is the fungus, and to mould is to shape. When talking about it with my colleagues yesterday, I was surprised that this isn’t common. Most people use one of the two spellings to refer to both.
Doing a quick search on duckduckgo also confirms that:
- mould is the British spelling referring both meanings.
- mold is the american spelling referring to both meanings.
In my quest to prove them wrong, I was surprised at how wrong I was… until I discovered a few people on the internet who said the same thing:
- https://english.stackexchange.com/a/169920
- https://english.stackexchange.com/a/172089
- https://english.stackexchange.com/a/139605
- https://old.reddit.com/r/confidentlyincorrect/comments/18sx2l0/mold_vs_mould_doubled_down/kfaa6nj/
- https://old.reddit.com/r/confidentlyincorrect/comments/18sx2l0/mold_vs_mould_doubled_down/kfcio12/
- https://old.reddit.com/r/confidentlyincorrect/comments/18sx2l0/mold_vs_mould_doubled_down/kfet3jz/
I’m not looking for what’s correct or incorrect anymore, I just find it very fascinating that there are some people who use the words similarly to me, but the vast majority of others who use it in a different way.
So: what’s the difference between mould and mold according to you?
I thought the same for the longest time. I blame playing tons of runescape as a kid.
I am an American so mold spelling is definitely what I ran into when referring to the fungus. Runescape is British English, so you used moulds all the time in crafting.
You have my vote for your interpretation, that had always been my understanding too.
As someone who regularly uses both British and American English both at work and in my personal life, I sometimes mix them unintentionally.
I almost always use the same spelling for either word and use context to make sure it is always clear which mold I am talking about.
I do think there is value in distinguishing the words with different spelling, but without getting everyone to agree on which spelling would mean what, I think this won’t be very productive.
“mould” should be pronounced the same as would or could
Which oune wold yo souggest?
I suggest using two different spellings:Mold is the fungus. To mould is to shape.Nvm I’m an idiot. Lol
i see mold i use clorox
I am also aware that they are spelled the same, but I consciously use a U only for the organism.
For what it’s worth, I’m Canadian, so nobody would bat an eye here at using either the American or British spelling of things.
Steve Mould obviously
I’ve always thought that mold is the fungus, and to mould is to shape.
I actually do this too. Not because I think it’s correct as such, but because that way I am consistent and I know what I’m talking about when I read back previous text that I’ve written.
I remember it by Mold = simplified English = simple organism.
I use “mold” for the fungus and the tool, “mould” for composted soil.
I use “mold” for both, and regard “mould” as the British spelling for both.
But the etymologies are interesting—the verb comes from French modle, while the fungus comes from late Middle English mould. So if anything, your assumed distinction is etymologically reversed.
That seems to be the consensus online. But thanks for that tidbit! It feels even more bizarre now knowing that.
I wonder why a handful of people think the way I presented in the post. Perhaps American/British influences in certain places? Reading books by british authors and books by american authors at the same time? Feels unlikely.
You know that there are two unrelated words, and you’ve seen two different spellings—it’s a natural assumption that the latter stems from the former.
Why so many people would pair them up the same (etymologically unsupported) way, I don’t know… maybe we’re used to correlating words relating to art with French, and assuming that words with “ou” come from French as well (and this case just happens to be an exception).
American here, I’ve never used “mould” for any definition, personally- always “mold”
There’s a fair number of people who insist that “geek” and “nerd” mean two different, specific things. I think this is the same phenomenon, that people seek nuance where there isn’t because it makes the language seem more interesting or something.
The words have very different origins. While I think they converged for a time, they started out different.
I always thought mould was the fungus and to mold was to manipulate a material
I do this too, to keep them separate in my head. I get that they’re interchangeable.
I’m Canadian, and we use a mix of British and American spellings, mostly depending on how we feel at the time of writing.
This is how I use it. So one could mold mould if they were so inclined.
Moulding is the trim around walls and whatnot. Molding is when something is in the process of having mold growing on it.
Wouldn’t that be mouldering?
Maybe. I honestly don’t know. Not really my field of expertise.
Moldering: “to crumble into dust, to rot”
All the definitions of molding I can find, are about shaping something.
