Meanings
mothership1
nounmothership (plural motherships)
plural motherships
- alternativeAlternative spelling of mother ship.
mothership2
nounmothership (uncountable)
- uncountableThe state of being a mother.
How did Solomon decide a question of mothership?
1916, Charles Augustus Shook, The Gist of the Bible: A Complete Handbook for Class and Home Study, page 2222 more examples
but with her mothership she puts on a lion's heart
1884, Francis de Sales, chapter XIV, in Henry Benedict McKay, transl., Treatise on the Love of God, page 101At present only the pride of mothership was apparent
1913, Susie Colyer Nethersole, Wilsam, page 357Synonyms: motherhood
Synonyms & antonyms
nounThe state of being a mother.
Similar
Also see
Origin
mothership · noun
- Proto-Indo-European*méh₂tēr
- Proto-Germanic*mōdēr
- Proto-West Germanic*mōder
- Old Englishmōdor
- Middle Englishmoder
- Englishmother
- Proto-Indo-European*sek-?
- Proto-Indo-European*skey-der.?
- Proto-Germanic*skipą
- Proto-West Germanic*skip
- Old Englishscip
- Middle Englishschip
- Englishship
- Englishmothership
mothership · noun
- Middle Englishmodership
- Englishmothership
From Middle English modership, equivalent to mother + -ship.
More words from Middle English
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
APA
mothership. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mothership
MLA
“mothership.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mothership. Accessed November 4, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “mothership,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mothership.
Source: mothership on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.