mud meaning: definition, etymology and quotations

mud

noun

/mʌd/ · Northern-England /mʊd/

Etymology

From Middle English mud, mudde, mode, probably a borrowing from Middle Dutch mod, modde or Middle Low German mudde, ultimately from Proto-Germanic *mud-, *mudra- (“mud”), perhaps from Proto-Indo-European *mū-, *mew- (“moist”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian Mudde (“mud”), Middle High German mot (“mud”), Swedish modd (“slush”). Compare also suffixed variants English mother (“vinegar-forming sediment in alcohol”), West Frisian modder (“mud”), Dutch modder (“mud”), German Low German Mudder (“mud”), German Moder (“moldiness, mildew, decay”), Danish mudder (“mud”). Alternative etymology suggests the Proto-Germanic word is possibly borrowed from a Uralic language (compare e.g. Finnish muta (“mud”), Northern Sami mođđi (“mud”), Erzya мода (moda, “earth, ground”) from Proto-Uralic *muďa (“earth”)).

14 senses

1A mixture of water and soil or fine grained sediment.
2A plaster-like mixture used to texture or smooth drywall.
3Wet concrete as it is being mixed, delivered and poured.
4Willfully abusive, even slanderous remarks or claims…
5Money, dough, especially when proceeding from dirty business.
6Stool that is exposed as a result of anal sex.
7A particle less than 62.5 microns in diameter, following…
8A black person.
9Drilling fluid.
10Coffee.
11Opium.
12Heroin.
13Lean.
14real property in English Land Law

1

A mixture of water and soil or fine grained sediment.

2

A plaster-like mixture used to texture or smooth drywall.

3

Business, Construction, Manufacturing Slang Wet concrete as it is being mixed, delivered and poured.

4

Figuratively Willfully abusive, even slanderous remarks or claims, notably between political opponents.

The campaign issues got lost in all the mud from both parties.

5

Slang Money, dough, especially when proceeding from dirty business.

6

Stool that is exposed as a result of anal sex.

7

Geography, Geology, Natural sciences A particle less than 62.5 microns in diameter, following the Wentworth scale

8

Derogatory, Ethnic, Slang, Slur A black person.

That includes muds, spics, kikes and niggers.2013, Bill Pezza, Homegrown:
How could they be so gullible to think peace and love could be achieved with the muds burning down our cities […]2015, Christian Picciolini, Romantic Violence: Memoirs of an American Skinhead:

9

Drilling fluid.

10

Slang Coffee.

11

Slang Opium.

Of course, I take a bang or some mud in coffee now and then, and I pick up on gage right smart.1951 December 20, William S. Burroughs, “To Allen Ginsberg”, in Oliver Harris, editor, The Letters of William S. Burroughs, 1945–1959, New York: Penguin, published 1993, →ISBN, page 98:
Brown Stuff, or Mud . . . Opium[1977 [1953], William S. Burroughs, edited by Allen Ginsberg, Junky, Penguin Books, →ISBN, Glossary, page 153:

12

Slang Heroin.

13

US, Slang Lean.

14

real property in English Land Law

Derived terms: 172 terms
as happy as a pig in mud, bemud, black mud, clear as mud, drag through the mud, giant mud crab, grass mud horse, happy as a pig in mud, here's mud in your eye, magic mud, Mexican mud turtle, Mississippi mud pie, mud and stud, mud army, mudball, mudbank, mud bath, mud biscuit, mudboat, mud bog, mud bogger, mud bogging, mudbrick, mudbucket, mudbug, mud cake, mudcaked, mudcap, mud carp, mudcat, mudcloth, mud cone, mud cookie, mudcovered, mud crab, mudcrack, mud cracking, mud-crusher, mud dauber, mudden, muddily, muddish, mud dome, mud dragon, mud drum, mud duck, mud-dwelling, muddy, muddy the waters, mud eel, mudeo, mud-eye, mud fence, mud fever, mud fight, mudfish, mudflap, mud flap, mud flat, mudflat, mud flood, mudflow, mudguard, mudgut, mudheap, mudhen, mud hen, mud-hogs, mudhole, mudhook, mudhopper, mudhouse, mud kicker, mud-kicker, mudkicker, mud kitchen, mudland, mudlark, mudless, mudlike, mudlined, mud lobster, mudlogger, mudlogging, mud machine, mudman, mud map, mud minnow, mudminnow, mud monkey, mudnester, mud on one's boots, mud out, mudpack, mud pie, mud pie argument, mud plantain, mud plug, mud pool, mud pot, mudpot, mudprawn, mudproof, mudpuddle, mud pump, mudpuppy, mud puppy, mud-puppy, mud purslane, mud riding, mudrock, mud-roofed, mud room, mudroom, mud run, mudscape, mudscow, mud scow, mud-scow, mud season, mud sedge, mud shark, mudshark, mud sharking, mudsill, mud skate, mudskipper, mud slab, mud sled, mudsled, mudslide, mud slide, mudslime, mudslinger, mudslinging, mud slogger, mudslum, mudsnail, mudsnake, mud snake, mudspate, mudstain, mudstained, mud sticks, mudstone, mud student, mudsucker, mud sunfish, mud turtle, mud volcano, mudwall, mudwalled, mud wasp, mud water, mudworm, mudwort, mudwrestler, mud wrestler, mud wrestler's rash, mud wrestling, name is mud, nonmud, Oaxaca mud turtle, one's name is mud, pluff mud, red mud, sea mud, stick in the mud, stick-in-the-mud, stuck in the mud, throw enough mud at the wall and some of it will stick, Vallarta mud turtle
Related terms: muddle

mud

verb

Etymology

From Middle English mud, mudde, mode, probably a borrowing from Middle Dutch mod, modde or Middle Low German mudde, ultimately from Proto-Germanic *mud-, *mudra- (“mud”), perhaps from Proto-Indo-European *mū-, *mew- (“moist”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian Mudde (“mud”), Middle High German mot (“mud”), Swedish modd (“slush”). Compare also suffixed variants English mother (“vinegar-forming sediment in alcohol”), West Frisian modder (“mud”), Dutch modder (“mud”), German Low German Mudder (“mud”), German Moder (“moldiness, mildew, decay”), Danish mudder (“mud”). Alternative etymology suggests the Proto-Germanic word is possibly borrowed from a Uralic language (compare e.g. Finnish muta (“mud”), Northern Sami mođđi (“mud”), Erzya мода (moda, “earth, ground”) from Proto-Uralic *muďa (“earth”)).

1

To make muddy or dirty; to apply mud to (something).

2

To make turbid.

3

To go under the mud, as an eel does.

mud

noun

Etymology From Dutch mud, from West Germanic, from Latin modius. Doublet of modius and muid.

1

Historical A traditional Dutch unit of dry measure of variable size, frequently about 3 bushels.

2

Historical A traditional Dutch unit of land area, vaguely reckoned as the amount of land required to sow a mud of seed.

3

Historical A kind of box traditionally used in the Netherlands for measuring muds.

Synonyms: Dutch bushel, bushel, muid

mud

verb

Etymology From MUD.

1

Internet To participate in a MUD or multi-user dungeon.

Wizards, in general, have a very different experience of mudding than other players. Because of their palpable and extensive extra powers over other players, and because of their special role in MUD society, they are frequently treated differently[…]1997, Philip Agre, Douglas Schuler, Reinventing technology, rediscovering community, page 153:

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