Moisty

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Exhibiting a slight degree of wetness or dampness
2. Having a small amount of moisture present, not completely dry
3. Containing some level of dampness that can be felt or seen

Etymology: "Moisty" is a plain formation: the adjective "moist" with the suffix "-y", which turns a noun or adjective into a description of having a quality or something resembling it. Its earliest English form appeared in Middle English as "moisti" or "moysty", built on the same "moist" base that the word "moisty" still carries. The base "moist" came into English from Old French "moiste," which in turn traced back to Latin "musteus," meaning "new" or "fresh," and was used of unfermented wine and new things generally. Over time its sense shifted from freshness toward dampness, so that "moist" came to describe something slightly wet rather than newly made. Adding "-y" gave English a way to describe a lesser degree of that quality, and "moisty" sits in the same family as words like "misty" and "dusty," describing something with a light covering of its base. The suffix is productive, so the word follows an ordinary pattern rather than a special history of its own.

Synonyms: damp, humid, wet

Antonyms: dry