muse

muse

think, ruminate on, dream, ponder, contemplate: I mused on his offer for a long time.

Not to be confused with:

mews – soft, high-pitched sounds of cats or kittens; characteristic sounds gulls make

Abused, Confused, & Misused Words by Mary Embree Copyright © 2007, 2013 by Mary Embree

Muse

 (myo͞oz)

n.

1. Greek Mythology Any of the nine daughters of Mnemosyne and Zeus, each of whom presided over a different art or science.

2. muse

a. A guiding spirit.

b. A source of inspiration: the lover who was the painter's muse.

3. muse Archaic A poet.

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[Middle English, from Old French, from Latin Mūsa, from Greek Mousa; see men- in Indo-European roots.]

Word History: Ever since Chaucer first mentions the Muses in a work from around 1390, English poets have invoked these goddesses like so many other versifiers since the days of Homer, who begins both The Iliad and The Odyssey with an invocation of his Muse. The word Muse comes from Latin Mūsa, which in turn is from Greek Mousa. In Greek dialects, this word is found in the variant forms mōsa and moisa, and together these indicate that the Greek word comes from an original *montwa. As to the further origins of this form, a clue is provided by the name of Mnemosyne, the goddess of memory and mother of the Muses. Her name is simply the Greek noun mnēmosunē, "memory"—the faculty of memory was indeed the mother of invention for the ancient Greek professional poets and bards whose job it was to compose new poems in traditional styles on festive occasions, to recite the verses of Homer, and to improvise material whenever they had a memory lapse. Greek mnēmosunē is derived from the root *mnā-, an extended form of the Greek and Indo-European root *men-, "to think." This is the root from which English also gets the words amnesia (from Greek), mental (from Latin), and mind (from Germanic). The reconstructed form *montwa, the ancestor of Greek Mousa, also comes from this root and probably originally referred to "mental power" that enables poets to craft verses—the Muses were the Greek poets' divinized conceptions of the faculties that help them to create and recite poetry.

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muse

 (myo͞oz)

v. mused, mus·ing, mus·es

v.intr.

To be absorbed in one's thoughts; engage in thought.

v.tr.

To consider or say thoughtfully: mused that it might take longer to drive than walk.

n.

A state of reflection.

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[Middle English musen, from Old French muser (possibly from mus, snout, from Medieval Latin mūsum) and or of Germanic origin.]

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mus′er n.

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.

muse

(mjuːz)

vb

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

2. (intr) to gaze thoughtfully

n

archaic a state of abstraction

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

ˈmuser n

ˈmuseful adj

ˈmusefully adv

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muse

(mjuːz)

n

(Poetry) a woman who inspires a creative artist, esp a poet

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

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Muse

(mjuːz)

n

(Classical Myth & Legend) 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 and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

muse

(myuz)

v. mused, mus•ing. v.i.

1. to think or meditate in silence.

2. Archaic. to gaze meditatively or wonderingly.

v.t.

3. to say or think meditatively.

[1300–50; Middle English: to mutter, gaze meditatively on < Middle French muser, perhaps ultimately derivative of Medieval Latin mūsum muzzle]

mus′er, n.

Muse

(myuz)

n.

1. one of the nine Greek goddesses, daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne, who presided over the arts: Calliope, Clio, Erato, Euterpe, Melpomene, Polyhymnia, Terpsichore, Thalia, and Urania.

2. (sometimes l.c.) the inspiration that motivates a poet, artist, or thinker.

3. (l.c.) a poet.

[1350–1400; < Middle French < Latin < Greek Moûsa]

Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.

muse

Past participle: mused
Gerund: musing

Imperative

muse

muse

Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011

Thesaurus

Noun	1.	Muse - in ancient Greek mythology any of 9 daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne; protector of an art or science Greek deity - a deity worshipped by the ancient Greeks
	2.	muse - the source of an artist's inspiration; "Euterpe was his muse" germ, source, seed - anything that provides inspiration for later work
Verb	1.	muse - reflect deeply on a subject; "I mulled over the events of the afternoon"; "philosophers have speculated on the question of God for thousands of years"; "The scientist must stop to observe and start to excogitate" meditate, mull, mull over, ponder, chew over, think over, excogitate, reflect, ruminate, speculate, contemplate cerebrate, cogitate, think - use or exercise the mind or one's power of reason in order to make inferences, decisions, or arrive at a solution or judgments; "I've been thinking all day and getting nowhere" premeditate - think or reflect beforehand or in advance; "I rarely premeditate, which is a mistake" theologise, theologize - make theoretical speculations about theology or discuss theological subjects introspect - reflect on one's own thoughts and feelings bethink - consider or ponder something carefully; "She bethought her of their predicament" cogitate - consider carefully and deeply; reflect upon; turn over in one's mind wonder, question - place in doubt or express doubtful speculation; "I wonder whether this was the right thing to do"; "she wondered whether it would snow tonight" puzzle - be uncertain about; think about without fully understanding or being able to decide; "We puzzled over her sudden departure" consider, study - give careful consideration to; "consider the possibility of moving"

Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.

muse

verb ponder, consider, reflect, contemplate, think, weigh up, deliberate, speculate, brood, meditate, mull over, think over, ruminate, cogitate, be lost in thought, be in a brown study Many of the papers mused on the fate of the President. He lay and mused in the warm sunlight.

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

muse ¹

verb

1. To experience dreams or daydreams:

daydream, dream, fantasize, woolgather.

2. To think or think about carefully and at length:

chew on (or over), cogitate, consider, contemplate, deliberate, entertain, excogitate, meditate, mull, ponder, reflect, revolve, ruminate, study, think, think out, think over, think through, turn over, weigh.

Idioms: cudgel one's brains, put on one's thinking cap, rack one's brain.

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muse ²

noun

1. One who writes poetry:

bard, poet, poetaster, poetess, rhymer, rhymester, versifier.

2. The condition of being so lost in solitary thought as to be unaware of one's surroundings:

absent-mindedness, abstraction, bemusement, brown study, daydreaming, reverie, study, trance.

The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Translations

يَتأمَّل

dumat

fundereMuse

Muse

μούσα

meditarmusareflexionar

muusa

songermuseméditer

brjóta heilann um e-î

musamusemeditare

mintimis perkratinėti

apcerētpārdomāt

mijmerennadenken

funderespekulere

muza

musa

musa

düşünceye dalmak

沉思

Muse

[mjuːz] N → musa f
the Muses → las Musas

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muse

[mjuːz]

A. VI to muse on or about sth → reflexionar sobre algo, meditar algo

B. VT "should we?" he mused → -¿debemos hacerlo? -dijo pensativo

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

muse

[ˈmjuːz]

vi → méditer, songer

n → muse f

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

Muse

n (Myth) → Muse f

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muse

vi → nachgrübeln, nachsinnen (liter) (→ about, on über +acc)

vt → grüblerisch or sinnierend (liter) → sagen

n → Muse f

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

Muse

[mjuːz] n (Myth) → Musa

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muse

¹ [mjuːz] n (fig) → musa

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muse

² [mjuːz] vi to muse on or about sth → rimuginare or meditare su qc

Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

muse

(mjuːz) verb

to think about a matter usually without serious concentration. mymer يَتأمَّل размишлявам refletir dumat die Muse fundere συλλογίζομαιreflexionar, meditar meelisklema انديشه کردن mietiskellä songer לְהַרהֵר कलादेवी करना, ध्यान करना razmišljati elmélkedik memikirkan brjóta heilann um e-ð riflettere 思にふける 명상하다 svarstyti, mintimis perkratinėti pārdomāt; apcerēt melamun mijmerenfundere, spekulere dumać اندیشه کول reflectir a medita, a cugeta размышлять dumať tuhtati razmišljati fundera, grubbla คิดรำพึง düşünceye dalmak 沈思 роздумувати, розмірковувати غور و فکر کرنا suy tưởng 沉思

Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.