moss

moss   (môs, mŏs)    n.   Any of various green, usually small, nonvascular plants of the class Musci of the division Bryophyta. A patch or covering of such plants. Any of various other unrelated plants having a similar appearance or manner of growth, such as the club moss, Irish moss, and Spanish moss. tr.v.   mossed, moss·ing, moss·es To cover with moss. [Middle English, from Old English mos, bog, and from Medieval Latin mossa, moss (of Germanic origin).]

Moss

Moss\, n. [OE. mos; akin to AS. me['o]s, D. mos, G. moos, OHG. mos, mios, Icel. mosi, Dan. mos, Sw. mossa, Russ. mokh', L. muscus. Cf. Muscoid.]

1. (Bot.) A cryptogamous plant of a cellular structure, with distinct stem and simple leaves. The fruit is a small capsule usually opening by an apical lid, and so discharging the spores. There are many species, collectively termed Musci, growing on the earth, on rocks, and trunks of trees, etc., and a few in running water.

Note: The term moss is also popularly applied to many other small cryptogamic plants, particularly lichens, species of which are called tree moss, rock moss, coral moss, etc. Fir moss and club moss are of the genus Lycopodium. See Club moss, under Club, and Lycopodium.

2. A bog; a morass; a place containing peat; as, the mosses of the Scottish border.

Note: Moss is used with participles in the composition of words which need no special explanation; as, moss-capped, moss-clad, moss-covered, moss-grown, etc.

Black moss. See under Black, and Tillandsia.

Bog moss. See Sphagnum.

Feather moss, any moss branched in a feathery manner, esp. several species of the genus Hypnum.

Florida moss, Long moss, or Spanish moss. See Tillandsia.

Iceland moss, a lichen. See Iceland Moss.

Irish moss, a seaweed. See Carrageen.

Moss agate (Min.), a variety of agate, containing brown, black, or green mosslike or dendritic markings, due in part to oxide of manganese. Called also Mocha stone.

Moss animal (Zo["o]l.), a bryozoan.

Moss berry (Bot.), the small cranberry (Vaccinium Oxycoccus).

Moss campion (Bot.), a kind of mosslike catchfly (Silene acaulis), with mostly purplish flowers, found on the highest mountains of Europe and America, and within the Arctic circle.

Moss land, land produced accumulation of aquatic plants, forming peat bogs of more or less consistency, as the water is grained off or retained in its pores.

Moss pink (Bot.), a plant of the genus Phlox (P. subulata), growing in patches on dry rocky hills in the Middle United States, and often cultivated for its handsome flowers. --Gray.

Moss rose (Bot.), a variety of rose having a mosslike growth on the stalk and calyx. It is said to be derived from the Provence rose.

Moss rush (Bot.), a rush of the genus Juncus (J. squarrosus).

Scale moss. See Hepatica.

moss 

Main Entry: moss
Pronunciation: 'mos
Function: noun
1 : any of a class (Musci) of bryophytic plants having a small leafy often tufted stem bearingsex organs at its tip —see SPHAGNUM
2 : any of various plants resembling mosses in appearance orhabit of growth —see CLUB MOSS, ICELANDMOSS, IRISH MOSS

moss   (môs)  Pronunciation Key  Any of numerous small bryophyte plants belonging to the phylum Bryophyta. Mosses, unlike liverworts, have some tissues specialized for conducting water and nutrients. As in the other bryophytes, the diploid sporophyte grows on the haploid gametophyte generation, which supplies it with nutrients. Mosses often live in moist, shady areas and grow in clusters or mats. Sphagnum mosses play a crucial role in the ecology of peat bogs. See more at bryophyte. Any of a number of plants that look like mosses but are not related to them. For instance, reindeer moss is a lichen, Irish moss is an alga, and Spanish moss is a bromeliad, a flowering plant.

moss

see rolling stone gathers no moss.

Moss

town and port, southeastern Norway, on the eastern shore of Oslo Fjord. Moss was founded in the 16th century. On Aug. 14, 1814, it was the site of the signing of the Convention of Moss, which ended the short war between Norway and Sweden that preceded their union. The town has paper and cotton mills, metalworks, shipyards, textile factories, breweries, and facilities for glass, asphalt, and tar production. The harbour is protected by adjacent Jel Island, called the "Pearl of Oslo Fjord" for its fine resort area and many large estates. The Moss River drains into Vann Lake and then flows through the town and into Oslo Fjord. Pop. (2007 est.) mun., 28,633.

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