mussel

a bivalve mollusk or clam

Not to be confused with:

muscle – brawn; power; force; organ that produces movement

mus·sel

(mŭs′əl)

1. Any of various marine bivalve mollusks that attach to hard surfaces in intertidal areas with byssal threads, especially the edible members of the family Mytilidae and in particular Mytilus edulis, a blue-black species of the North Atlantic Ocean, raised commercially for food.

2. Any of numerous freshwater bivalve mollusks of the order Unionoida that burrow in the sand or mud of rivers, streams, and ponds.

3. Any of several similar bivalve mollusks, such as the zebra mussel.

[Alteration (possibly influenced by Dutch mossel) of Middle English muscle, from Old English muscelle, from Medieval Latin mūscula, from Latin mūsculus, sea mussel; see muscle.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

mussel

(ˈmʌsəl)

1. (Animals) any of various marine bivalves of the genus Mytilus and related genera, esp M. edulis (edible mussel), having a dark slightly elongated shell and living attached to rocks, etc

2. (Animals) any of various freshwater bivalves of the genera Anodonta, Unio, etc, attached to rocks, sand, etc, having a flattened oval shell (a source of mother-of-pearl). The zebra mussel, Dreissena polymorpha, can be a serious nuisance in water mains

[Old English muscle, from Vulgar Latin muscula (unattested), from Latin musculus, diminutive of mūs mouse]

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

mus•sel

(ˈmʌs əl)

n.

any bivalve mollusk, esp. an edible marine bivalve of the family Mytilidae and a freshwater clam of the family Unionidae.

[before 1000; Middle English, Old English muscle < Vulgar Latin *mūscula, feminine derivative of Latin mūsculus little mouse, sea mussel. See muscle]

mussel

- Gets its name from Latin musculus, "little mouse."

mussel

[ˈmʌsl]

A. N → mejillón m

B. CPD mussel bed N → criadero m de mejillones

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

mussel

[ˈmʌs^əl] n → moule f

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

mussel

n → (Mies)muschel f; mussel bed → Muschelbank f

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

mussel

[ˈmʌsl] n → cozza

Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

mussel

(ˈmasl) noun

a variety of edible shellfish with a shell in two parts.

mussel

→ أُمُّ الـخُلُول slávka jedlá musling Miesmuschel μύδι mejillón simpukka moule dagnja cozza ムール貝 홍합 mossel musling małż mexilhão мидия mussla หอยแมลงภู่ midye con trai 贻贝

Multilingual Translator © HarperCollins Publishers 2009

mussel

n. almeja.

English-Spanish Medical Dictionary © Farlex 2012

Mentioned in

References in classic literature

The one in the middle held a mussel in its mouth, which it laid on the shore at the youth's feet, and when he had taken it up and opened it, there lay the gold ring in the shell.

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There were mussels and abalones and clams and rock-oysters, and great ocean-crabs that were thrown upon the beaches in stormy weather.

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Apart, in separate compartments, were spread out chaplets of pearls of the greatest beauty, which reflected the electric light in little sparks of fire; pink pearls, torn from the pinna-marina of the Red Sea; green pearls, yellow, blue, and black pearls, the curious productions of the divers molluscs of every ocean, and certain mussels of the water courses of the North; lastly, several specimens of inestimable value.

View in context

There are also a clean race of frogs and tortoises, and a few mussels in it; muskrats and minks leave their traces about it, and occasionally a travelling mud-turtle visits it.

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She watched the small boys on a day when she had eaten nothing, and emulated them, gathering mussels from the rocks at low water, cooking them by placing them among the coals of a fire she built on top of the wall.

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They are mussels. Each has his special place on the rock, and remains glued to it all his life.

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Scientists said that while this was not "immediately dangerous" for the creatures, it could impact on growth and may even help explain a decline in mussel banks in some areas of the UK.

Under-sea noise stresses mussels, researchers find; Science: Findings could explain molluscs' decline

Behind one of these is Charmel Dela Cruz (not her real name), a 4-foot-8 24-year-old mussel trader.

Women of Bacoor's embattled mussel industry struggle for survival

"We are thrilled our Urban Stream Research Center is leading efforts to increase native freshwater mussel populations in waterways in the region to improve water quality in support of our conservation mission," forest district President Joe Cantore said.

How nurturing mussels helps our region's waterways

The struggle for survival between invertebrate predators and their prey in mussel beds is regulated by very delicate mechanisms.

Discriminating Eaters: Sea Stars Asterias rubens L. Feed Preferably on Mytilus trossulus Gould in Mixed Stocks of Mytilus trossulus and Mytilus edulis L

Noun	1.	mussel - black marine bivalves usually steamed in wine edible mussel, Mytilus edulis - a mussel with a dark shell that lives attached to rocks shellfish - meat of edible aquatic invertebrate with a shell (especially a mollusk or crustacean)
	2.	mussel - marine or freshwater bivalve mollusk that lives attached to rocks etc. bivalve, lamellibranch, pelecypod - marine or freshwater mollusks having a soft body with platelike gills enclosed within two shells hinged together marine mussel, mytilid - marine bivalve mollusk having a dark elongated shell; live attached to solid objects especially in intertidal zones freshwater clam, freshwater mussel - bivalve mollusk abundant in rivers of central United States