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muggle

American  
[muhg-uhl] / ˈmʌg əl /

noun

  • muggles
    plural
  1. a nonmagical person in J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter universe.

    1. a person who is not familiar with the Harry Potter universe.

      He’s a muggle—he hasn’t read any of the books.

    2. a person who is not familiar with or knowledgeable about a specific subject (often used attributively).

      I’m a true fan of K-pop, and my brother is just a muggle.


Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms


Etymology

Origin of muggle

First recorded in 1995–2000; from the Harry Potter series of novels by J.K. Rowling ( def. )


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Most time-wasting but fun is watching the cast decide if some strange words are from the muggle or magical universes.

From Washington Times ● Jul. 17, 2022

Non-nudists are referred to as “textiles,” like a wizard calling out a muggle.

From New York Times ● Feb. 4, 2020

More than 800 players from as far afield as Iceland and Hong Kong took part in the tournament - the largest yet staged in the muggle universe.

From Reuters ● Jul. 2, 2018

“What do the characters of Harry Potter wear under their robes? I figure they have to wear something, so do they wear muggle clothing or do they have a dress code?”

From Slate ● Sep. 11, 2016

In Germany, the Guardian reported, "muggle", "quidditch" and "house elf" were becoming "part of German schoolchildren's vocabulary".

From The Guardian ● May 8, 2010

The fictional game has been a real-life sensation among muggles for more than a decade and is played as a fast-paced, mixed-gender contact sport across the world.

From Washington Post ● Jul. 20, 2022

What a depressing descent it’s been for the “Fantastic Beasts” movies, the “Harry Potter” prequel franchise intended to expand the magical world of witches, wizards and muggles spun to life by J.K.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 13, 2022

New offerings, along with a number of holdovers, were able to draw muggles and crack the top five as comedy “Instant Family” and heist drama “Widows” each opened relatively on par with expectations.

From Reuters ● Nov. 18, 2018

This prequel to the Harry Potter series, starring Eddie Redmayne as a “magizoologist” in 1920s New York, has muggles everywhere counting the days ’til next November.

From Time ● Dec. 21, 2015

It forever sets you apart — for better or worse — from mere muggles.

From New York Times ● Jun. 29, 2013

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