muse

[ myooz ]
See synonyms for muse on Thesaurus.com
verb (used without object),mused, mus·ing.
  1. to think or meditate in silence, as on some subject.

  2. Archaic. to gaze meditatively or wonderingly.

verb (used with object),mused, mus·ing.
  1. to meditate on.

  2. to comment thoughtfully or ruminate upon.

Origin of muse

1
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English musen “to mutter, gaze meditatively on, be astonished,” from Middle French muser, perhaps ultimately derivative of Medieval Latin mūsum “snout”; muzzle

Other words for muse

Other words from muse

  • muser, noun

Words that may be confused with muse

Other definitions for Muse (2 of 3)

Muse
[ myooz ]

noun
  1. Classical Mythology.

    • any of a number of sister goddesses, originally given as Aoede (song), Melete (meditation), and Mneme (memory), but latterly and more commonly as the nine daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne who presided over various arts: Calliope (epic poetry), Clio (history), Erato (lyric poetry), Euterpe (music), Melpomene (tragedy), Polyhymnia (religious music), Terpsichore (dance), Thalia (comedy), and Urania (astronomy); identified by the Romans with the Camenae.

    • any goddess presiding over a particular art.

  2. (sometimes lowercase) the goddess or the power regarded as inspiring a poet, artist, thinker, or the like.

  1. (lowercase) the genius or powers characteristic of a poet.

Origin of Muse

2
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English Muse, from Middle French, from Latin Mūsa, from Greek Moûsa

Other definitions for MUSE (3 of 3)

MUSE

abbreviation
  1. Mainstream U.S. English: a dialect of American English that is considered to be standard or unmarked by dialectal variation in pronunciation, syntactic structures, or vocabulary, and that is heard in newscasts and taught in schools.

Origin of MUSE

3
First recorded in 1995–2000; by abbreviation

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use muse in a sentence

  • So the muser mused in his quiet study, with the roar of the water in his ears.

    Mrs. Maxon Protests | Anthony Hope
  • The muser finished disrobing and donned his night robes, but it was a long time before he felt like slumber.

    A Black Adonis | Linn Boyd Porter
  • The muser dwelt long on this invocation, pacing to and fro on the narrow strip of rock.

    Trevethlan: (Vol 2 of 3) | William Davy Watson
  • But 'hungry generations' soon tread down the muser in a city.

    Desperate Remedies | Thomas Hardy
  • Sweeter dreams now woo the muser, warming into passion, pulsing with a more eager throb of desire, in changed tone and pace.

British Dictionary definitions for muse (1 of 3)

muse1

/ (mjuːz) /


verb
  1. (when intr, often foll by on or about) to reflect (about) or ponder (on), usually in silence

  2. (intr) to gaze thoughtfully

noun
  1. archaic a state of abstraction

Origin of muse

1
C14: from Old French muser, perhaps from mus snout, from Medieval Latin mūsus

Derived forms of muse

  • muser, noun
  • museful, adjective
  • musefully, adverb

British Dictionary definitions for muse (2 of 3)

muse2

/ (mjuːz) /


noun
  1. a goddess that inspires a creative artist, esp a poet

Origin of muse

2
C14: from Old French, from Latin Mūsa, from Greek Mousa a Muse

British Dictionary definitions for Muse (3 of 3)

Muse

/ (mjuːz) /


noun
  1. Greek myth any of nine sister goddesses, each of whom was regarded as the protectress of a different art or science. Daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne, the nine are Calliope, Clio, Erato, Euterpe, Melpomene, Polyhymnia, Terpsichore, Thalia, and Urania

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012