Moonling

noun

noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A simpleton; a lunatic. archaic

    "I have a husband, and a two-legg'd one, But such a moonling, as no wit of man, Or roses can redeem from being an ass."

  2. 2
    One who is lovesick; one who moons over a beloved. archaic, poetic

    "The sky was not quite as blue as her—Thunderation, he was no moonling!"

  3. 3
    A changeling.

    ""I see. He's a black man. But Jacob Millhaven is not black. Eldridge was left on his doorstep as a baby, and the philosopher adopted him." "Oh! Then he's a moonling! He doesn't seem to suffer from any stigma.""

  4. 4
    Someone from the Moon.

    "A shy moonling hangs on the suit of an astronaut and is taken back to earth."

Synonyms

All synonyms
lunaticlunatic

Example

More examples

"I have a husband, and a two-legg'd one, But such a moonling, as no wit of man, Or roses can redeem from being an ass."

Etymology

From moon + -ling. Compare moon-related origins of lunacy and lunatic.

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.