muster

[ muhs-ter ]

/ ˈmʌs tər /

|||

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR muster ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object)

to assemble (troops, a ship's crew, etc.), as for battle, display, inspection, orders, or discharge.

to gather, summon, rouse (often followed by up): He mustered all his courage.

verb (used without object)

to assemble for inspection, service, etc., as troops or forces.

to come together; collect; assemble; gather.

noun

an assembling of troops or persons for formal inspection or other purposes.

an assemblage or collection.

the act of mustering.

Also called muster roll. (formerly) a list of the persons enrolled in a military or naval unit.

Verb Phrases

muster in, to enlist into service in the armed forces.

muster out, to discharge from service in the armed forces: He will be mustered out of the army in only two more months.

Nearby words

Idioms

pass muster,

to pass a cursory inspection.
to measure up to a certain standard; be adequate: Your grades don't pass muster.

Origin of muster

1250–1300; Middle English mostren (v.) < Old French mostrer < Latin mōnstrāre to show, derivative of mōnstrum portent; see monster

SYNONYMS FOR muster

1 convoke.

1, 4 convene; congregate.

5 gathering, assembly, convention.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR muster ON THESAURUS.COM

ANTONYMS FOR muster

1, 4 scatter, separate.

SEE MORE ANTONYMS FOR muster ON THESAURUS.COM

Related formspre·mus·ter, verb (used with object)un·mus·tered, adjective

Can be confusedmuster mustard

Synonym study

1. See gather.

Definition for muster (2 of 2)

must

[ muhst ]

/ mʌst /

auxiliary verb

to be obliged or bound to by an imperative requirement: I must keep my word.

to be under the necessity to; need to: Animals must eat to live.

to be required or compelled to, as by the use or threat of force: You must obey the law.

to be compelled to in order to fulfill some need or achieve an aim: We must hurry if we're to arrive on time.

to be forced to, as by convention or the requirements of honesty: I must say, that is a lovely hat.

to be or feel urged to; ought to: I must buy that book.

to be reasonably expected to; is bound to: It must have stopped raining by now. She must be at least 60.

to be inevitably certain to; be compelled by nature: Everyone must die.

verb (used without object)

to be obliged; be compelled: Do I have to go? I must, I suppose.

Archaic. (sometimes used with ellipsis of go, get, or some similar verb readily understood from the context): We must away.

adjective

necessary; vital: A raincoat is must clothing in this area.

noun

something necessary, vital, or required: This law is a must.

Origin of must

before 900; Middle English most(e), Old English mōste (past tense); cognate with German musste. See mote²

SYNONYMS FOR must

1 Must, ought, should express necessity or duty. Must expresses necessity or compulsion: I must attend to those patients first. Soldiers must obey orders. Ought (weaker than must ) expresses obligation, duty, desirability: You ought to tell your mother. Should expresses obligation, expectation, or probability: You are not behaving as you should. Children should be taught to speak the truth. They should arrive at one o'clock.

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

Examples from the Web for muster

Unfortunately, the best response we can muster might be much harder than a band-aid or hidden camera.
Is Brooklyn Becoming Unsafe for Gays? It Depends On Which Ones|Jay Michaelson|October 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Rising to retrieve it, I offer her what meager reassurance I can muster.
The Stacks: Grateful Dead I Have Known|Ed McClanahan|August 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But two years after that, UFW walked away from its negotiations with Gerawan, unable to muster adequate worker support.
A Crazy California Union Scandal|James Poulos|August 2, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Yet, relative to the massive amount of attention, shock, and criticism, I can only muster a shrug and a plea to chill out.
The Internet’s Latest Pearl-Clutching Panic Over Mamading Is Insane|Emily Shire|July 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST

The upside is that we might muster the political will to develop policies that match reality.
Our Ruling Ideology Is Denial|Eugene Linden|May 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST
A company may be mustered in the same manner on its own parade ground, the muster to follow the company inspection.
Infantry Drill Regulations, United States Army, 1911|United States War Department
But the number of claymores which this first muster brought to Lochaber cannot have been less than two thousand.
Claverhouse|Mowbray Morris
As quickly as one troop was filled up, it was sent off to the place of Muster.
Boscobel: or, the royal oak|William Harrison Ainsworth
Horace treated Mrs. Anderson and the Major with all the politeness he could muster.
Battling the Clouds|Captain Frank Cobb
The muster was for the ceremony of passing the Government Inspector and the Doctor.
The Uncommercial Traveller|Charles Dickens

British Dictionary definitions for muster (1 of 5)

muster

/ (ˈmʌstə) /

verb

to call together (numbers of men) for duty, inspection, etc, or (of men) to assemble in this way

muster in to enlist into military service
muster out to discharge from military service

(tr) Australian and NZ to round up (livestock)

(tr sometimes foll by up) to summon or gatherto muster one's arguments; to muster up courage

noun

an assembly of military personnel for duty, inspection, etc

a collection, assembly, or gathering

Australian and NZ the rounding up of livestock

a flock of peacocks

pass muster to be acceptable

Word Origin for muster

C14: from old French moustrer, from Latin monstrāre to show, from monstrum portent, omen

British Dictionary definitions for muster (2 of 5)

must

/ (mʌst, unstressed məst, məs) /

verb (takes an infinitive without to or an implied infinitive)

used as an auxiliary to express obligation or compulsion: you must pay your dues . In this sense, must does not form a negative. If used with a negative infinitive it indicates obligatory prohibition

used as an auxiliary to indicate necessityI must go to the bank tomorrow

used as an auxiliary to indicate the probable correctness of a statementhe must be there by now

used as an auxiliary to indicate inevitabilityall good things must come to an end

(used as an auxiliary to express resolution)

on the part of the speaker when used with I or weI must finish this
on the part of another or others as imputed to them by the speaker, when used with you, he, she, they, etclet him get drunk if he must

(used emphatically) used as an auxiliary to express conviction or certainty on the part of the speakerhe must have reached the town by now, surely; you must be joking

(foll by away) used with an implied verb of motion to express compelling hasteI must away

noun

an essential or necessary thingstrong shoes are a must for hill walking

Word Origin for must

Old English mōste past tense of mōtan to be allowed, be obliged to; related to Old Saxon mōtan, Old High German muozan, German müssen

British Dictionary definitions for muster (3 of 5)

must

/ (mʌst) /

noun

mustiness or mould

Word Origin for must

C17: back formation from musty

British Dictionary definitions for muster (4 of 5)

must

/ (mʌst) /

noun

the newly pressed juice of grapes or other fruit ready for fermentation

Word Origin for must

Old English, from Latin mustum new wine, must, from mustus (adj) newborn

British Dictionary definitions for muster (5 of 5)

must

⁴

/ (mʌst) /

noun

a variant spelling of musth

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 muster (1 of 7)

muster

c.1300, "to display, reveal, appear," from Old French mostrer "appear, show, reveal," also in a military sense (10c., Modern French montrer), from Latin monstrare "to show," from monstrum "omen, sign" (see monster). Meaning "to collect, assemble" is early 15c.; figurative use (of qualities, etc.) is from 1580s. To muster out "gather to be discharged from military service" is 1834, American English. To muster up in the figurative and transferred sense of "gather, summon, marshal" is from 1620s. Related: Mustered; mustering.

Word Origin and History for muster (1 of 7)

muster

late 14c., "action of showing, manifestation," from Old French mostre "illustration, proof; examination, inspection" (13c., Modern French montre), literally "that which is shown," from mostrer (see muster (v.)). Meaning "act of gathering troops" is from c.1400. To pass musters (1570s) originally meant "to undergo military review without censure."

Word Origin and History for muster (2 of 7)

must

Old English moste, past tense of motan "have to, be able to," from Proto-Germanic *mot- "ability, leisure (to do something)" (cf. Old Saxon motan "to be obliged to, have to," Old Frisian mota, Middle Low German moten, Dutch moeten, German müssen "to be obliged to," Gothic gamotan "to have room to, to be able to"), perhaps from PIE root *med- "to measure, to take appropriate measures" (see medical (adj.)). Used as present tense from c.1300, from the custom of using past subjunctive as a moderate or polite form of the present.

Word Origin and History for muster (3 of 7)

must

n.1

"new wine," Old English must, from Latin mustum (also source of Old High German, German most, Old French moust, Modern French moût, Spanish, Italian mosto), short for vinum mustum "fresh wine," neuter of mustus "fresh, new, newborn," perhaps literally "wet," and from PIE *mus-to-, from root *meus- "damp" (see moss).

Word Origin and History for muster (4 of 7)

must

n.2

"mold," c.1600, perhaps a back-formation of musty (q.v.).

Word Origin and History for muster (5 of 7)

must

n.3

"male elephant frenzy," 1871, from Urdu mast "intoxicated, in rut," from Persian mast, literally "intoxicated," related to Sanskrit matta- "drunk, intoxicated," past participle of madati "boils, bubbles, gets drunk," from PIE root *mad- "wet, moist" (see mast (n.2)).

Word Origin and History for muster (6 of 7)

must

n.4

"that which has to be done, seen, or experienced," 1892, from must (v.). As an adjective, "obligatory, indispensable," by 1912, from the noun; must-read is from 1959.

Idioms and Phrases with muster (1 of 2)

muster

In addition to the idiom beginning with muster

muster in

also see:

pass muster

Idioms and Phrases with muster (2 of 2)

must

see a must; show must go on.

muster

verb (used with object)

verb (used without object)

noun

Verb Phrases

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Idioms

Origin of muster

Synonym study

Definition for muster (2 of 2)

must

auxiliary verb

verb (used without object)

adjective

noun

Origin of must

Examples from the Web for muster

British Dictionary definitions for muster (1 of 5)

muster

verb

noun

Word Origin for muster

British Dictionary definitions for muster (2 of 5)

must

verb (takes an infinitive without to or an implied infinitive)

noun

Word Origin for must

British Dictionary definitions for muster (3 of 5)

must

noun

Word Origin for must

British Dictionary definitions for muster (4 of 5)

must

noun

Word Origin for must

British Dictionary definitions for muster (5 of 5)

must

noun

Word Origin and History for muster (1 of 7)

muster

Word Origin and History for muster (1 of 7)

muster

Word Origin and History for muster (2 of 7)

must

Word Origin and History for muster (3 of 7)

must

Word Origin and History for muster (4 of 7)

must

Word Origin and History for muster (5 of 7)

must

Word Origin and History for muster (6 of 7)

must

Idioms and Phrases with muster (1 of 2)

muster

Idioms and Phrases with muster (2 of 2)

must