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mummer

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mum⋅mer

  [muhm-er]
Use mummer in a Sentence
–noun
1. a person who wears a mask or fantastic costume while merrymaking or taking part in a pantomime, esp. at Christmas and other festive seasons.
2. an actor, esp. a pantomimist.
Origin:
1400–50; late ME mommer. See mum 2 , -er 1
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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mum·mer   (mŭm'ər)   
n.  
  1. A masked or costumed merrymaker, especially at a festival.
    1. One who acts or plays in a pantomime.
    2. An actor.

[Middle English, from Old French momeur, from momer, to wear a mask, pantomime.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Mummer

Mumm"er\, n. [Cf. OF. mommeur. See Mumm, and cf. Momier.] One who mumms, or makes diversion in disguise; a masker; a buffon.

Jugglers and dancers, antics, mummers. --Milton.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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mummer 
c.1405, probably a fusion of M.Fr. momeur "mummer" (from momer "mask oneself," from momon "mask") and M.E. mommen "to mutter, be silent," related to mum (interj.). OED marks it as "obsolete," but the word, and the custom, are alive and thriving in Philadelphia, U.S.A.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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