Meaning

noun loose soil rich in organic matter

noun the distinctive form in which a thing is made

noun the process of becoming mildewed

originFrom Middle English mowlde, noun use and alteration of mowled, past participle of moulen, mawlen (“to grow mouldy”), from Old Norse mygla (compare dialectal Danish mugle), from Proto-Germanic *muglōną, diminutive and denominative of *mukiz (“soft substance”) (compare Old Norse myki, mykr (“cow dung”)), from Proto-Indo-European *mewk- (“slick, soft”). More at muck and meek.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0