muss

C2+ Topic:Actions & Processes

US /mʌs/ UK /mʌs/ See IPA manual

Minimal pairs

Sounds like much /tʃ/ vs /s/ Sounds like mush /s/ vs /ʃ/

Meanings

1

verb
to make untidy or dishevel, especially the hair

Please don't muss my hair before the photographs are taken.

Verb forms

Verb forms are not available for this word yet.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 verb · to make untidy or dishevel,... dishevel rumpletousleruffle disarrange disorder mess

Opposites

tidy smooth neaten arrange

Word family

Derived forms mussymussed

Related forms mess

Etymology

A 19th-century American English variant of mess, ultimately from Old French mes ('portion of food'), from Latin missus ('a course at a meal'), from mittere ('to send, place').

missus Latin mittere Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Actions & Processes

External links

# muss

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** verb
**IPA (US):** /mʌs/
**IPA (UK):** /mʌs/

## Meanings
1. to make untidy or dishevel, especially the hair

## Examples
- Please don't muss my hair before the photographs are taken.

## Synonyms
- dishevel
- rumple
- tousle
- ruffle
- disarrange
- disorder
- mess

## Antonyms
- tidy
- smooth
- neaten
- arrange

## Derived Forms
- mussy
- mussed

## Related Forms
- mess

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: missus
- Root: mittere - to send

## Etymology
A 19th-century American English variant of mess, ultimately from Old French mes ('portion of food'), from Latin missus ('a course at a meal'), from mittere ('to send, place').

## AI Etymology
Muss is a 19th-century American English variant of mess, ultimately from Old French mes ('portion of food'), from Latin missus ('a course at a meal'), from mittere ('to send, place'). The etymological trail includes Latin missus, Latin mittere. The same word family includes mussy, mussed, mess. Its current verb use means "to make untidy or dishevel, especially the hair".

## Topics
- Actions & Processes

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