mumps

[ muhmps ]

/ mʌmps /

noun (used with a singular verb) Pathology.

an infectious disease characterized by inflammatory swelling of the parotid and usually other salivary glands, and sometimes by inflammation of the testes or ovaries, caused by a paramyxovirus.

Nearby words

mummify, mummy, mummy bag, mummy porn, mump, mumps, mumps skin test antigen, mumps virus, mumps virus vaccine, mumpsimus, mumsy

Origin of mumps

First recorded in 1590–1600; mump¹ + -s³

Definition for mumps (2 of 3)

mump

[ muhmp, moo mp ]

/ mʌmp, mʊmp /

British Dialect

verb (used with object)

to mumble; mutter.

verb (used without object)

to sulk; mope.

to grimace.

Origin of mump

1580–90; imitative, apparently akin to mum¹; compare Dutch mompen to mumble, German mimpfeln to mumble while eating, Icelandic mumpa to take into the mouth, eat greedily

Definition for mumps (3 of 3)

mump

[ muhmp, moo mp ]

/ mʌmp, mʊmp /

British Dialect

verb (used with object)

to cheat.

verb (used without object)

to beg.

Origin of mump

First recorded in 1645–55, mump is from the Dutch word mompen (obsolete)

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for mumps

It is the family of man—because where measles and mumps and pertussis are concerned, we are all connected.
Colorado’s Anti-Anti-Vaxxer Bill Gets Watered Down|Kent Sepkowitz|April 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Mumps was ambitious, advocating a ship of huge length, made with two full sheets.
It Never Can Happen Again|William De Morgan
The mumps, and the measles, and the whooping-cough, and the scarlet fever started in their race for man.
The Ghosts|Robert G. Ingersoll
And it happened that the boy who rode the buffalo was ill with the mumps, so they really needed another boy.
Sonny Boy|Sophie Swett

At fourteen she and a boy next door but seven both have the mumps.
Sailor's Knots (Entire Collection)|W.W. Jacobs
There they learned from Mumps how the sneak had been treated by Pepper and Hogan.
The Putnam Hall Champions|Arthur M. Winfield

British Dictionary definitions for mumps (1 of 3)

mumps

/ (mʌmps) /

noun

(functioning as singular or plural) an acute contagious viral disease of the parotid salivary glands, characterized by swelling of the affected parts, fever, and pain beneath the ear: usually affects childrenAlso called: epidemic parotitis

Derived Formsmumpish, adjective

Word Origin for mumps

C16: from mump 1 (to grimace)

British Dictionary definitions for mumps (2 of 3)

mump

/ (mʌmp) /

verb

(intr) archaic to be silent

Word Origin for mump

C16 (to grimace, sulk, be silent): of imitative origin, alluding to the shape of the mouth when mumbling or chewing

British Dictionary definitions for mumps (3 of 3)

mump

/ (mʌmp) /

verb

(intr) archaic to beg

Word Origin for mump

C17: perhaps from Dutch mompen to cheat

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

Word Origin and History for mumps

mumps

type of contagious disease, c.1600, from plural of mump "a grimace" (1590s), originally a verb, "to whine like a beggar" (1580s), from Dutch mompen "to cheat, deceive," originally probably "to mumble, whine," of imitative origin. The infectious disease probably so called in reference to swelling of the salivary glands of the face and/or to painful difficulty swallowing. Mumps also was used from 17c. to mean "a fit of melancholy."

Medicine definitions for mumps

mumps

[ mŭmps ]

pl.n.

An acute inflammatory contagious disease caused by a paramyxovirus and characterized by swelling of the salivary glands, especially the parotids, and sometimes of the pancreas, ovaries, or testes. This disease, mainly affecting children, can be prevented by vaccination.epidemic parotitis

Science definitions for mumps

mumps

[ mŭmps ]

An infectious disease caused by a virus of the family Paramyxoviridae and the genus Rubulavirus, characterized by swelling of the salivary glands, especially the parotid glands, and sometimes of the pancreas, testes, or ovaries. Vaccinations, usually given in early childhood, confer immunity to mumps.

Culture definitions for mumps

mumps

An acute and contagious disease marked by fever and inflammation of the salivary glands. Caused by a virus, mumps is normally a childhood disease that passes with no aftereffects.

Note

A child who has had mumps is immune from further infection by the mumps virus.