mumsyn.adj.
/ˈmʌmzi/, U.S. /ˈməmzi/ colloquial.
A. n.
Esp. in playful imitation of children's speech: = mummy n.2
ΘΚΠ
society > society and the community > kinship or relationship > kinsman or relation > parent > mother > [noun]
mothereOE
dame?c1225
merea1275
childbearera1382
genitricea1500
mammy1523
dama1547
mama1555
genetrix1561
mam1570
mum?1595
old lady1599
authoressc1603
mam1608
genitress1610
old woman1668
old girl1745
mummy1768
momma1810
madre1815
maw1826
ma1829
marm1835
mater1843
mom1846
mommy1846
maternal1867
motherkins1870
muvver1871
mumsy1876
mamacita1887
mutti1905
birth mother1906
duchess1909
amma1913
momsey1914
mums1915
moms1925
mata1945
baby-mother1966
mama1982
old dear1985
baby-mama1986
1876 C. M. Yonge Three Brides I. xvi. 274 ‘Well,’ says Mumsey, ‘it is not what was thought the thing for ladies in my time.’
1926 L. Hart We can't be as Good as Last Year in Compl. Lyrics (1986) 71/1 Dear Mumsy, Da and Sis would smile.
1948 J. Betjeman Sel. Poems 116 ‘Coo-ee! Coo-ee!’ across the lavender..Mumsie called.
1953 A. Christie Pocket Full of Rye xxvii. 184 Poor Mumsy, she was so devoted to Dad, you know.
1989 Buster Holiday Special 42/2 He'll be swept up into the sky and Mumsie will never see her little lambkins again.
B. adj.
Motherly; homely, conventional.
ΘΚΠ
society > society and the community > kinship or relationship > kinsman or relation > parent > mother > motherhood > [adjective]
motherlyOE
maternal1492
maternine1623
maternalistic1909
mumsy1961
1961 ‘T. Hinde’ For Good of Company i. 15 They're all three tucked up in one great big mumsy bed.
1970 ‘W. Haggard’ Hardliners vi. 64 The nurse..was a West Indian woman, large and mumsy.
1985 Times 15 Jan. 9/1 She was young when Hollywood decided she was a bit mumsy.
1994 Independent on Sunday 9 Oct. 3/7 She wore a big mumsy dress.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2003; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.adj.1876