[ mju:t ]
■ adjective
1》 (of a person) refraining from speech or temporarily speechless.
↘lacking the faculty of speech.
↘(of hounds) not giving tongue while hunting.
2》 (of a letter) not pronounced.
■ noun
1》 a person without the power of speech.
↘ historical (in some Asian countries) a servant who was deprived of the power of speech.
2》 historical a professional attendant or mourner at a funeral.
3》 a clamp placed over the bridge of a stringed instrument to deaden the resonance without affecting the vibration of the strings.
4》 a pad or cone placed in the opening of a brass or other wind instrument.
■ verb
1》 deaden or muffle the sound of.
2》 reduce the strength or intensity of.
↘[as adjective ~d ] (of colour or lighting) not bright; subdued.
Derivatives
~ly adverb
~ness noun
Origin
ME: from OFr. muet , dimin. of mu , from L. mutus .
Usage
To describe a person without the power of speech as ~ is today likely to cause offence. Nevertheless, there are no accepted alternative terms in general use, apart from the possibly imprecise term speech-impaired . See also usage at deaf ~ .