/ mjuːz; NAmE / noun , verb
■ noun
1.
a person or spirit that gives a writer, painter, etc. ideas and the desire to create things
SYN inspiration :
He felt that his muse had deserted him (= that he could no longer write, paint, etc.) .
2.
Muse (in ancient Greek and Roman stories) one of the nine goddesses who encouraged poetry, music and other branches of art and literature
■ verb ( formal )
1.
[ v ] muse (about / on / over / upon sth) to think carefully about sth for a time, ignoring what is happening around you
SYN ponder :
I sat quietly, musing on the events of the day.
—see also musing
2.
to say sth to yourself in a way that shows you are thinking carefully about it :
[ v speech ]
'I wonder why?' she mused.
[also v that ]
••
WORD ORIGIN
noun late Middle English : from Old French , or from Latin musa , from Greek mousa muse.
verb Middle English : from Old French muser meditate, waste time, perhaps from medieval Latin musum muzzle.