muffle

Anything that mutes or deadens sound.

Noun

  1. Anything that mutes or deadens sound.
  2. A warm piece of clothing for the hands.
  3. A boxing glove.
    • N.B.—Mr Broughton proposes, with proper assistance, to open an academy at his house in the Haymarket, for the instruction of those who are willing to be initiated in the mystery of boxing: […] muffles are provided, that...
  4. A kiln or furnace, often electric, with no direct flames (a muffle furnace)
  5. The bare end of the nose between the nostrils, especially in ruminants.
  6. A machine with two pulleys to hoist load by spinning wheels, polyspast, block and tackle.
    • Between the two pulleys c, c¹, and around the shaft a, is a muffle d, which receives at both ends the rounded heads of three, four, five, or more screws f, which act as levers. The levers are formed of a right and...

Origin

From Middle English muflen (“to muffle”), aphetic alteration of Anglo-Norman amoufler, from Old French enmoufler (“to wrap up, muffle”), from moufle (“mitten”), from Medieval Latin muffula (“a muff”), of Germanic origin (—first recorded in the Capitulary of Aachen in 817 C.E.), from Frankish *muffël (“a muff, wrap, envelope”) from *mauwa (“sleeve, wrap”) (from Proto-Germanic *mawwō (“sleeve”)) + *vël (“skin, hide”) (from Proto-Germanic *fellą (“skin, film, fleece”). Alternate etymology traces the Medieval Latin word to Frankish *molfell (“soft garment made of hide”) from *mol (“softened, forworn”) (akin to Old High German molawēn (“to soften”), Middle High German molwic (“soft”), English mulch) + *fell (“hide, skin”).

Forms

muffles

Derived

bemuffle enmuffle mufflehead muffly

Verb

  1. To wrap (a person, face etc.) in fabric or another covering, for warmth or protection; often with up.
    • The face lies muffled up within the garment. - 1712 (date written), [Joseph] Addison, Cato, a Tragedy. […], London: […] J[acob] Tonson, […], published 1713, →OCLC, (please specify the page):
    • He muffled with a cloud his mournful eyes. - 1700, [John] Dryden, “Ceyx and Alcone”, in Fables Ancient and Modern; […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC:
    • It is much to the Honour of our Engliſh VVives, that they have never given up that fundamental Point [the "right of cuckoldom"]; and that tho' in former Ages they vvere muffled up in Darkneſs and Superſtition, yet that...
  2. To wrap up or cover (a source of noise) in order to deaden the sound.
    • to muffle the strings of a drum, or that part of an oar which rests in the rowlock
    • I intend to muffle the sweeps and row the schooner up to the head of the creek there, from which point we can command the pile of sandal-wood with our gun. - 1858, R M Ballantyne, The Coral Island:
  3. To mute or deaden (a sound etc.).
    • The singer's voice was muffled by the thick walls, yet Tyrion knew the verse. - 1999, George R.R. Martin, A Clash of Kings, Bantam, published 2011, page 397:
  4. To speak indistinctly, or without clear articulation.
  5. To prevent seeing, or hearing, or speaking, by wraps bound about the head; to blindfold; to deafen.

Forms

muffles muffling muffled

Derived

muffler muffle up unmuffle