mphint.
/mh/, /mf/, U.S. /m(p)f/, /mh/ Now rare.
Expressing disapproval, doubt, or dissatisfaction.
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1860 Atlantic Monthly Apr. 474 ‘Mph! mph!’ he sniffed, as he came in. ‘You smell of lamp-smoke here.’
1872 ‘M. Twain’ Roughing It xxxix. 276 The Indian betrayed no trepidation, no distress, not even discomfort. He simply..remarked: ‘Mph! Dam stove heap gone!’
1876 ‘M. Twain’ Adventures Tom Sawyer xxxv. 272 What would people say?.. ‘Mph! Tom Sawyer's Gang! pretty low characters in it!’
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2003; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
> as lemmas
mph
mph n. miles per hour; (also as v. intransitive) to travel.As a verb, apparently an isolated use by Wodehouse.
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1909 Cent. Dict. Suppl. m.p.h.
1935 Discovery Oct. 293/2 Speed was increased by only two m.p.h.
1942 R.A.F. Jrnl. 16 May 9 The qualities of this type of aircraft are judged..by its m.p.h., manoeuvrability and ascending speed.
1960 P. G. Wodehouse Jeeves in Offing xix. 185 I deposited Upjohn at the ‘Bull and Bush’ and started m-p-h-ing homeward.
1975 Guardian 20 Jan. 7/3 The car with..a top speed of 107 mph, is aimed initially at the American market.
1987 Observer 20 Sept. (Colour Suppl.) 5/2 (advt.) A 2 litre..engine..will power you to 60 mph in under eight seconds.
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int.1860as lemmas