muggins

[ muhg-inz ]

/ ˈmʌg ɪnz /

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noun

a convention in the card game of cribbage in which a player scores points overlooked by an opponent.

a game of dominoes, in which any player who can make the sum of two ends of the line equal five or a multiple of five adds the number so made to their score.

British Slang. a fool.

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Origin of muggins

First recorded in 1850–55; probably special use of proper name; def. 3 by association with mug (def. 4)

Words nearby muggins

Mugabe, mugga, muggee, mugger, mugging, muggins, muggle, muggy, Mughal, mugho pine, mug punter

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use muggins in a sentence

"We'll march home Siamese fashion or my name is Muggins," said the inspector, between his teeth.
The Incendiary|W. A. (William Augustine) Leahy
How well it reads, that 'Private Muggins received a shot in the neck and died without a groan.'
The Orpheus C. Kerr Papers. Series 1|Robert H. Newell
Serious Muggins had come out with Silver-headed Jack, and had got the title because he never smiled.
Grif|B. L. (Benjamin Leopold) Farjeon
Serious Muggins actually seemed pleased that we were not successful.
Grif|B. L. (Benjamin Leopold) Farjeon

I was working at the windlass, and Serious Muggins was chopping down a tree, a little distance off, for firewood.
Grif|B. L. (Benjamin Leopold) Farjeon

British Dictionary definitions for muggins

muggins

/ (ˈmʌɡɪnz) /

noun

British slang

a simpleton; silly person
a title used humorously to refer to oneself

a variation on the game of dominoes

a card game

Word Origin for muggins

C19: probably from the surname Muggins

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