muffle

• POS: Noun, Verb (transitive)
• HYPHEN: muf=fle

CIDE DICTIONARY

muffle, n. 

 The bare end of the nose between the nostrils; -- used esp. of ruminants.  [1913 Webster]

muffle, v. t. [Cf. F. moufle a mitten, LL. muffula, OD. moffel a muff. See Muff.].

•  To wrap up in something that conceals or protects; to wrap, as the face and neck, in thick and disguising folds; hence, to conceal or cover the face of; to envelop; to inclose; -- often with up.  South.  [1913 Webster]

  "The face lies muffled up within the garment."  [1913 Webster]

  "He muffled with a cloud his mournful eyes."  [1913 Webster]

  "Muffled up in darkness and superstition."  [1913 Webster]
•  To prevent seeing, or hearing, or speaking, by wraps bound about the head; to blindfold; to deafen.  [1913 Webster]
•  To wrap or fit with something that dulls or deadens the sound of; as, to muffle the strings of a drum, or that part of an oar which rests in the rowlock; to muffle the exhaust of a motor vehicle.  [1913 Webster]

muffle, v. i. [Cf. F. maffle, mumble, D. moffelen.].

 To speak indistinctly, or without clear articulation.  [1913 Webster]

muffle, n. [F. moufle, prop., a mitten, from the resemblance in shape. See Muffle, v. t., Muff.].

•  Anything with which another thing, as an oar or drum, is muffled; also, a boxing glove; a muff.  [1913 Webster]
•  An earthenware compartment or oven, often shaped like a half cylinder, used in furnaces to protect objects heated from the direct action of the fire, as in scorification of ores, cupellation of ore buttons, etc.  [1913 Webster]
•  A small oven for baking and fixing the colors of painted or printed pottery, without exposing the pottery to the flames of the furnace or kiln.  [1913 Webster]
•  A pulley block containing several sheaves.  Knight.  [1913 Webster]

OXFORD DICTIONARY

muffle, v. & n.
--v.tr.
1 (often foll. by up) wrap or cover for warmth.
2 cover or wrap up (a source of sound) to reduce its loudness.
3 (usu. as muffled adj.) stifle (an utterance, e.g. a curse).
4 prevent from speaking.
--n.
1 a receptacle in a furnace where substances may be heated without contact with combustion products.
2 a similar chamber in a kiln for baking painted pottery.

muffle, n. the thick part of the upper lip and nose of ruminants and rodents.

Etymology

F mufle, of unkn. orig.

THESAURUS

muffle

acoustic tile, antiknock, antlia, apply to, baffle, baffler, beak, beezer, bill, black out, blanket, block, bugle, bundle up, canopy, censor, choke, choke off, cloak, clothe, cloud, conceal, conk, cope, cover, cover up, cowl, curtain, cushion, damp, dampen, dampener, damper, deaden, deafen, dull, dumbfound, eclipse, enfold, enshroud, envelop, film, gag, hap, hood, hugger-mugger, hush, hush up, hush-hush, hushcloth, kill, lay on, lay over, mantle, mask, mellow, muffle up, muffler, mute, muzzle, nares, neb, nib, nose, nostrils, nozzle, obduce, obscure, occult, olfactory organ, overlay, overspread, pecker, proboscis, protect, put on, put to silence, quash, quiet, quieten, quietener, repress, rhinarium, rostrum, schnozzle, screen, scum, shield, shroud, shush, shut down on, silence, silence cloth, silencer, sit on, smeller, smother, snoot, snout, soft pedal, soft-pedal, soften, sordine, sordino, sound-absorbing material, soundproofing, soundproofing insulation, sourdine, spread over, squash, squelch, stifle, still, stop, strangle, strike dumb, subdue, superimpose, superpose, suppress, swaddle, swathe, throttle, tone down, trunk, veil, wrap, wrap up

ROGET THESAURUS

muffle

Aphony

VB keep silence, speak low, speak softly, whisper, silence, render mute, render silent, muzzle, muffle, suppress, smother, gag, strike dumb, dumfounder, drown the voice, put to silence, stop one's mouth, cut one short, stick in the throat.

Stammering

VB stammer, stutter, hesitate, falter, hammer, balbutiate, balbucinate, haw, hum and haw, be unable to put two words together, mumble, mutter, maud, mauder, whisper, mince, lisp, jabber, gibber, sputter, splutter, muffle, mump, drawl, mouth, croak, speak thick, speak through the nose, snuffle, clip one's words, murder the language, murder the King's English, murder the Queen's English, mispronounce, missay.

Silence

VB be silent, hold one's tongue, render silent, silence, still, hush, stifle, muffle, stop, muzzle, put to silence.

Concealment

VB conceal, hide, secrete, put out of sight, lock up, seal up, bottle up, encrypt, encode, cipher, cover, screen, cloak, veil, shroud, cover up one's tracks, screen from sight, screen from observation, drawing the veil, draw the curtain, close the curtain, curtain, shade, eclipse, throw a view over, be cloud, be mask, mask, disguise, ensconce, muffle, smother, befog, whisper, keep from, keep back, keep to oneself, keep snug, keep close, keep secret, keep dark, bury, sink, suppress, keep from, keep from out of view, keep from out of sight, keep in the shade, throw into the shade, throw into background, stifle, hush up, smother, withhold, reserve, fence with a question, ignore, keep a secret, keep one's own counsel, hold one's tongue, make no sign, not let it go further, not breathe a word, not breathe a syllable about, not let the right hand know what the left is doing, hide one's light under a bushel, bury one's talent in a napkin, keep in the dark, leave in the dark, keep in the ignorance, blind, blind the eyes, blindfold, hoodwink, mystify, puzzle, bamboozle, be concealed, suffer an eclipse, retire from sight, couch, hide oneself, lie hid, lie in perdu, lie in close, lie in ambush (ambush), seclude oneself, lurk, sneak, skulk, slink, prowl, steal into, steal out of, steal by, steal along, play at bopeep, play at hide and seek, hide in holes and corners, still hunt.