mildew.

A fungal growth appearing as a thin powdery or downy coating, often in damp conditions.

Use it for

Words that belong together

• powdery mildew
• mildew on fabric

On the page

Mildew spread across the curtains in the unheated house.

Usage notes

Primary category: horror / gothic. Forms: Usually uncountable; no ordinary plural in this sense. Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings. Established modern English lexical item. No separate regional spelling or grammatical inflection entry. Writing functions: atmosphere, description. Commonness: moderately common. Third-person singular: mildews.