muffin

American  

[muhf-in] / ˈmʌf ɪn /

noun

1. an individual cup-shaped quick bread made with wheat flour, cornmeal, or the like, and baked in a pan muffin pan containing a series of cuplike forms.

2. English muffin.

---

muffin British  

/ ˈmʌfɪn /

noun

1. a thick round baked yeast roll, usually toasted and served with butter

2. a small cup-shaped sweet bread roll, usually eaten hot with butter

---

Etymology

Origin of muffin

First recorded in 1695–1705; origin uncertain

Explanation

A muffin is a small baked good made from batter. Don't kid yourself: the only real difference between a slice of cake and a muffin is the shape. Muffins are single-serving quick breads, which rise with the help of baking soda or baking powder and eggs instead of yeast. They tend to be sweet and somewhat moist, but heavier than a cake or cupcake. Muffins are baked in a pan with cup-sized indentations. The word was originally moofin, which may come from the Low German muffe, "small cake," or the Old French moflet, "soft or tender."

Example Sentences

He could be relaxing at a cliff-side pool, jet-skiing behind a yacht, or sinking his teeth into a forbidden, gluten-rich blueberry muffin.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 30, 2026

Finally, a muffin that feels like a quiet triumph of patience, experimentation, and a little alchemy.

From Salon • Dec. 18, 2025

For dessert, he will whip up a healthy pumpkin cheesecake made of high-protein muffin mix and low-fat cottage cheese.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 26, 2025

He said he generally doesn’t leave tips when he’s ordering a coffee or a muffin at a quick-serve establishment.

From MarketWatch • Oct. 24, 2025

They’re like a really tall muffin that isn’t sweet, that falls over.

From "Unusual Chickens for the Exceptional Poultry Farmer" by Kelly Jones

Related Words

• bread
• doughnut
• pastry
• scone