( <美> molt)
no obj.
1- (of an animal) shed old feathers, hair, or skin, or an old shell, to make way for a new growth（动物）脱毛; 蜕皮; 脱壳; 换羽：
the adult birds were already moulting into their winter shades of grey
成年鸟已开始换上冬天灰色的羽毛
with obj. the snake moults its skin.蛇蜕皮。
1.1
- (of hair or feathers) fall out to make way for new growth（毛, 羽）脱去; 蜕去：
the last of his juvenile plumage had moulted.
他最后的雏鸟羽毛已蜕去了。
- a loss of plumage, skin, or hair, especially as a regular feature of an animal's life cycle脱毛; 蜕皮; 换羽。
词源
Middle English moute, from an Old English verb based on Latin mutare 'to change'. For the intrusive -l-, compare with words such as fault.