Moisteneth

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To add a small amount of liquid to something so that it becomes slightly wet
2. To make an object or surface damp by applying water or another fluid
3. To cause a substance to become moist or to increase its moisture content gently

Etymology: "Moisteneth" is an archaic third-person singular form of "moisten," meaning "he, she or it moistens." The "-eth" ending was the standard present-tense verb ending in Early Modern English, used in older Bible translations and literature, and it has since been replaced by "-s" in everyday speech. "Moisten" itself is simple to unpack. It combines "moist," which came into English from Old French "moiste" and ultimately from Latin "musteus," meaning fresh or new, with the suffix "-en," which turns an adjective into a verb meaning "to make or become that quality." So to moisten is to make something moist. The suffix "-en" has a long pedigree: it descends from an old Germanic verb-forming element that appears in Old English as "-nian," and it passed through Middle English as "-en" before settling into the form we use today.

Synonyms: dampens, wetens

Antonyms: dry, desiccate