: a pigmented spot, mark, or small permanent protuberance on the human body
especially
: nevus
1
: any of numerous burrowing insectivores (especially family Talpidae) with tiny eyes, concealed ears, and soft fur
2
: one who works in the dark
3
: a machine for tunneling
4
: a spy (such as a double agent) who establishes a cover long before beginning espionage
broadly
: one within an organization who passes on information
: an abnormal mass in the uterus especially when containing fetal tissues
1
: a massive work formed of masonry and large stones or earth laid in the sea as a pier or breakwater
2
: the harbor formed by a mole
variants
or less commonly mol
plural moles
: the base unit of amount of pure substance in the International System of Units that is defined as having exactly 6.02214076 x 1023 indivisible units (such as atoms or molecules) of that substance
First you would need to measure out one mole of salt. Remember that one mole of a compound equals its relative molecular mass in grams, so to obtain one mole of sodium chloride you would weigh out 58.5 g …—
John Atkinson and Carol Hibbert
John Atkinson and Carol Hibbertone mole of helium contains 4 grams
: a spicy sauce made with chiles and usually chocolate and served with meat
Examples of mole in a Sentence
Noun (2)
for years we have had a mole in the enemy's national intelligence agency
Recent Examples on the Web
Scott Meslow, Vulture, 30 Oct. 2025
To keep gophers and moles out, gardeners had to put their own screens under the ground to keep them from digging up to the plants.
—Nollyanne Delacruz, Mercury News, 29 Oct. 2025
One is a simple whack-a-mole game.
—Khaleda Rahman, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Oct. 2025
Traps can take some trial and error and may take multiple attempts because a mole may change its habits.
—Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 17 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for mole
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Noun
In addition to winning Francesca to her cause, the episode also reveals that Fringilla Vigo is also acting as Yennefer’s mole, insinuating herself with Vilgefortz while passing information back to the sorceresses.
—Scott Meslow, Vulture, 30 Oct. 2025
To keep gophers and moles out, gardeners had to put their own screens under the ground to keep them from digging up to the plants.
—Nollyanne Delacruz, Mercury News, 29 Oct. 2025
One is a simple whack-a-mole game.
—Khaleda Rahman, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Oct. 2025
Traps can take some trial and error and may take multiple attempts because a mole may change its habits.
—Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 17 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for mole
Cite this Entry
“Mole.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mole. Accessed 4 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
mole
1 of 3 noun
: a small usually brown and sometimes slightly raised permanent spot on the skin
mole
2 of 3 noun
: any of numerous burrowing mammals with tiny eyes, concealed ears, and soft fur that eat insects
mole
3 of 3 noun
: a pier made of heavy solid material (as concrete or stone) that protects a harbor from rough seas
Etymology
Noun
Old English māl "spot on the skin"
Noun
Middle English mole "burrowing animal"
Noun
from early French mole "stone pier," from early Italian molo (same meaning), derived from Latin moles, literally "a mass"
Medical Definition
mole
2 of 3 noun
: an abnormal mass in the uterus:
a
: a blood clot containing a degenerated fetus and its membranes
mole
3 of 3 noun
variants
also mol
: the base unit in the International System of Units for the amount of pure substance that contains the same number of elementary entities as there are atoms in exactly 12 grams of the isotope carbon 12
a mole of photons
a mole of sodium chloride
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