definitions

muse

[ myooz ]
/ myuz /
||

verb (used without object), mused, mus·ing.

to think or meditate in silence, as on some subject.
Archaic. to gaze meditatively or wonderingly.

verb (used with object), mused, mus·ing.

to meditate on.
to comment thoughtfully or ruminate upon.

RELATED CONTENT

What Does 🤐 Zipper-mouth Face Emoji Mean?The zipper-mouth face emoji depicts a face and two eyes, with the mouth appearing as a silver zipper, complete with a dangling zipper pull.
READ MORE
How Books Have Influenced Our Favorite SongsFrom Shakespearian dramas to teen classics, here are a few of the literary guiding lights that inspired popular music.
READ MORE

RELATED WORDS

ponder, ruminate, brood, consider, deliberate, feel, percolate, moon, roll, reflect, contemplate, meditate, revolve, weigh, cogitate, speculate, think

Nearby words

musculotendinous cuff, musculotropic, musculotubal canal, musculus, musd, muse, museful, musefully, museological, museology, muses

Origin of muse

1300–50; Middle English musen to mutter, gaze meditatively on, be astonished < Middle French muser, perhaps ultimately derivative of Medieval Latin mūsum muzzle
SYNONYMS FOR muse
1 cogitate, ruminate, think; dream.
1, 3 ponder, contemplate, deliberate.
Related formsmus·er, noun
Can be confusedmews muse

Definition for muses (2 of 2)

Muse

[ myooz ]
/ myuz /

noun

Classical Mythology.
  1. any of a number of sister goddesses, originally given as Aoede (song), Melete (meditation), and Mneme (memory), but latterly and more commonly as the nine daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne who presided over various arts: Calliope (epic poetry), Clio (history), Erato (lyric poetry), Euterpe (music), Melpomene (tragedy), Polyhymnia (religious music), Terpsichore (dance), Thalia (comedy), and Urania (astronomy); identified by the Romans with the Camenae.
  2. any goddess presiding over a particular art.
(sometimes lowercase) the goddess or the power regarded as inspiring a poet, artist, thinker, or the like.
(lowercase) the genius or powers characteristic of a poet.

Origin of Muse

1350–1400; Middle English Muse < Middle French < Latin Mūsa < Greek Moûsa
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for muses

British Dictionary definitions for muses (1 of 3)

muse

1
/ (mjuːz) /

verb

(when intr, often foll by on or about) to reflect (about) or ponder (on), usually in silence
(intr) to gaze thoughtfully

noun

archaic a state of abstraction
Derived Formsmuser, nounmuseful, adjectivemusefully, adverb

Word Origin for muse

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

British Dictionary definitions for muses (2 of 3)

muse

2
/ (mjuːz) /

noun

a goddess that inspires a creative artist, esp a poet

Word Origin for muse

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

British Dictionary definitions for muses (3 of 3)

Muse

/ (mjuːz) /

noun

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 & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Culture definitions for muses

Muses

Nine goddesses of classical mythology who presided over learning and the arts. They were especially associated with poetry. Ancient Greek or Roman writers would often begin their poems by asking for the aid of the Muses in their composition.

Note

Writers and artists to this day speak of their “muse,” meaning their source of inspiration.
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.