Moulding vs molding

You have letters - now what do you do with them?
DavidN
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Moulding vs molding

Postby DavidN » Fri Sep 05, 2008 10:54 am

Definition
mould (SHAPE) UK, US mold Show phonetics
noun
1 [C] a hollow container with a particular shape into which soft or liquid substances are poured, so that when the substance hardens it takes the shape of the container:
a cake/jelly mould

2 [S] If someone is from or in a mould, they have the characteristics typical of a certain type of person:
He's cast in a very different mould from his brother.
He's a player in the Becker mould.

mould UK, US mold Show phonetics
verb
1 [T] to make a soft substance a particular shape:
This plastic is going to be moulded into plates.
The children moulded little pots out of/from (= made them by shaping) clay.

2 [T] to try to change or influence someone:
He kept trying to mould me into something he wanted me to be.

3 [I usually + adverb or preposition] to fit the body very closely:
She was wearing an extremely tight costume which moulded to/round the contours of her body.

moulding UK, US molding Show phonetics
noun [C or U]
a piece of wood, plastic, stone, etc. which has been made into a particular shape to decorate the top or bottom of a wall, or a door, window or piece of furniture
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For some reason, it being early for me, I cannot understand when the spelling of moulding (for baseboards and/or crown moulding) was attributed to UK. I had been under the impression that the woodwork was spelled with the 'u' and the fungi and all other was spelled without. Can anyone clarify for me? Or do I misconstrue somewhere? BTW.... I often misconstrue. Age more than likely. :) Oh and thanks.
Even in chaos there is a pattern.

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Slava
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Postby Slava » Tue Aug 24, 2010 8:09 pm

Well, it's only two years late, so here's my take on the matter.

While some of us, at one time I was of the number, try to make a distinction, I believe the only real difference is the "ou" v "o" debate between British and American English.
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