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mossback

 - 3 dictionary results

moss⋅back

[maws-bak, mos-]
–noun
1. Informal.
a. a person holding very antiquated notions; reactionary.
b. a person living in the backwoods; rustic.
2. an old turtle.
3. Angling. a large and old fish, as a bass.
4. a wild bull or cow.

Origin:
1870–75, Americanism; moss + back 1
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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moss·back   (môs'bāk', mŏs'-)   
n.  
  1. An old shellfish or turtle with a growth of algae on its back.

  2. An old, large, or sluggish fish.

  3. An extremely conservative or old-fashioned person.

moss'backed' adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Slang Dictionary
mossback [ˈmɔsbæk]

  1. n.
    an old square; a stick in the mud. : Walter, you are such an old mossback.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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