mussel

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   a marine or freshwater bivalve mollusc with an elongated shell, often living attached to rocks or buried in a riverbed

   Freshwater mussels filtered the pond water from beneath the gravel.

2. 2
   noun

   a mussel considered as food

   The cook steamed each mussel with garlic and white wine.

From Middle English muscle and Old English muscle, through Late Latin muscula from Latin musculus, literally 'little mouse.' The old forms muscle and muscel were used for the shellfish before mussel became the standard spelling; muscle is its etymological doublet.

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