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单词 muster
释义

mustern.1

Brit. /ˈmʌstə/, U.S. /ˈməstər/
Forms:

α. Middle English mostir, Middle English mostre, Middle English mostur, Middle English moustere, Middle English mowstir, Middle English mowstre, Middle English mustir, Middle English mustur, Middle English–1500s moster, Middle English–1500s mouster, Middle English–1500s moustre, Middle English–1500s mustour, Middle English–1500s mustoure, Middle English–1500s mustre, Middle English–1500s musture, Middle English– muster, 1500s mowster, 1500s moystere, 1500s mustere, 1500s–1600s mustar, 1600s mustard, 1600s mustraes (plural); Scottish pre-1700 moister, pre-1700 mostour, pre-1700 mostrys (plural), pre-1700 moustar, pre-1700 mousterres (plural), pre-1700 moustir, pre-1700 moustour, pre-1700 moustre, pre-1700 moustris (plural), pre-1700 moustryrris (plural), pre-1700 mousture, pre-1700 mowster, pre-1700 moyster, pre-1700 mustar, pre-1700 mustard, pre-1700 mustare, pre-1700 mustor, pre-1700 mustour, pre-1700 mustur, pre-1700 musture, pre-1700 mwster, pre-1700 mwstur, pre-1700 mwsture, pre-1700 1700s– muster.

β. Middle English monstre, Middle English monstyr, Middle English mounstre, Middle English–1500s monster, 1500s mounster; Scottish pre-1700 monstour, pre-1700 monter, pre-1700 munstour.

Origin: A borrowing from French. Etymon: French monstre.
Etymology: < Anglo-Norman monstre display, show, manifestation (of power), inspection of an army, and Middle French monstre, moustre, mostre example, model (early 13th cent. in Old French), a show of merchandise for sale, etc. (mid 13th cent.), sample of goods for sale (1350), inspection of an army (1376), payment given to soldiers at a muster (16th cent.; French montre ) < monstrer muster v.1 Compare post-classical Latin monstra act of showing (1289 in a British source), military muster (13th cent.), monstrum sample (from 8th cent. in British sources), military muster (from 14th cent. in British sources). Compare also Italian mostra (a1292; 1429 in form monstra ; compare mostra n.), Spanish muestra (1253), Catalan mostra (1271), Old Occitan mostra (c1350; Occitan mòstra), Portuguese mostra (15th cent.).The word was borrowed into several Germanic languages from French in the sense ‘sample’, compare Middle Dutch muster , monster (Dutch monster ), Middle Low German munster , muster , Middle High German muster (German Muster ). Early evidence for β. forms is frequently doubtful, as u and n are normally indistinguishable in 15th-cent. manuscripts; however, the form mounster demonstrates the existence of genuine spellings with -n- . Compare muster v.1 With phrase to pass muster (see sense 2d), compare French passer à la montre to be admitted or accepted by others (16th cent.). With sense 8 perhaps compare Middle French monstre clock-face, portable clock (see montra n.), Italian mostra ‘a watch or a dyall of the sunne’ (1598 in Florio), although both are first attested later.
I. Senses relating to the assembling or collecting together of persons, etc.
1. The number of people or things assembled on a particular occasion; an assembly, a collection.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > arrangement or fact of being arranged > state of being gathered together > an assemblage or collection > [noun] > of a certain number
mustera1382
numberc1384
polla1613
a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Bodl. 959) (1963) 1 Kings v. 13 Kyng Salamon chees werkmen of al israel, & þe mowstre [L. indictio] was þretti thousendis of men.
1401 in H. Ellis Orig. Lett. Eng. Hist. (1827) 2nd Ser. I. 16 Oweyn ys moster a Monday was..viij. Mill. and xijxx. spers.
1483–4 in Hist. MSS Comm.: 10th Rep.: App. Pt. V: MSS Marquis of Ormonde &c. (1885) 317 in Parl. Papers (C. 4576-I) XLII. 1 What so ever parson..will make assemble congregation or moustre of people.
1577 B. Googe tr. C. Heresbach Foure Bks. Husbandry i. f. 12 The double number of them makes the muster the greater.
1640 T. Rawlins Rebellion ii. i. sig. D2v A muster of diseases Can't smell worse, than her rotten teeth.
1702 G. Farquhar Inconstant v. 78 I have still Spirits to attend me. and can raise such a muster of Faries as shall punish you to death.
1810 Sporting Mag. 36 145 A tolerable muster of amateurs and boxing gentry.
1836 Quarter Race Kentucky (1846) 13 The muster at the stand was slim.
1863 W. C. Baldwin Afr. Hunting viii. 325 We set off, a strong muster, two days ago, to hunt part of the forest in which the elephants stand.
1890 ‘R. Boldrewood’ Colonial Reformer (1891) 236 I've never seen half, or quarter the muster we've got here lately.
1933 C. Brooks Jrnl. 3 Jan. (1998) 43 To the Whitefriars for luncheon; a good muster.
1955 Times 10 May 11/4 Six-foot guardsmen, each mounted on the head of the man below him,..the exact muster that would reach from sea level to the peak of Everest.
2.
a. Chiefly Military. An act of calling together soldiers, sailors, prisoners, etc.; an assembling of people for inspection, exercises, etc., or an act of counting or enlisting people into (esp. armed) service; a roll-call. Also (Australian): a census (now historical). to make (also take) a muster, to assemble and count soldiers, etc. to make (one's) muster: to muster or review one's forces; to make an effort; †to present oneself for inspection (obsolete).
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > place > presence > be present [verb (intransitive)] > present oneself or itself
to make (one's) muster1419
presenta1425
to come fortha1535
to come forwards1550
to turn up1663
to come forward1683
report1815
to show up1827
show1848
to show the flag1937
society > armed hostility > military organization > ceremonial > [noun] > muster
muster1419
wappenschawing1424
mustering1440
wappenschawa1503
rendezvous1596
assembly1917
society > armed hostility > military organization > ceremonial > perform ceremony [verb (intransitive)] > make a muster
to make (also take) a muster1419
to make (one's) muster1419
1419 Ordin. War xiii, in T. Twiss Monumenta Juridica (1871) I. 463 That noman be so hardy to have other men at his mustrez, than tho that be with hym self withold for the same voiage.
?a1425 (c1400) Mandeville's Trav. (Titus C.xvi) (1919) 153 The firste thousand is þus passed, & hath made his mostre [Fr. moustre].
1490 W. Caxton tr. Foure Sonnes of Aymon (1885) viii. 187 The kyng Charlemagne began for to make hys mustres, for to know how much people that he had.
a1500 (?c1450) Merlin 658 (MED) The kynge..made a mustre of armed peple that yef the romayns hem saugh thei sholde be dismayed.
a1513 H. Bradshaw Lyfe St. Werburge (1521) i. ii. sig. a.vi In musture and in batayle euer the pryce haue they The kynges grace to serue.
c1540 J. Bellenden tr. H. Boece Hyst. & Cron. Scotl. xv. xiii. f. 228v/1 The erle of Ros come with mony folkis to Perth, & maid his mowster to the kyng.
1548 Hall's Vnion: Henry VI f. clxxxv The people of the erles parte, beyng in their muster in Sainct Jhons felde..: sodaynly the lord Fawconbridge, whiche toke the musters, wisely declared to the multitude, the offences and breaches of the late agremente.
1553 T. Wilson Arte of Rhetorique ii. f. 80 Mettellus [sic] toke muster and required Cesar to be there.
1560 J. Daus tr. J. Sleidane Commentaries f. cccclxvij That the kyng of England wold hire eight thousande horsemen,..and that mounsters [L. delectus] shoulde be take in sondry places.
1569 R. Grafton Chron. II. 327 The Lorde Percye caused all his companie..to make their Musters, and they found them selues to be the number of three thousand men of armes, and .vij. thousande Archers.
c1595 Countess of Pembroke Psalme lxxxvii. 18 in Coll. Wks. (1998) II. 128 Iehoua this account shall make, When he of his shall muster take.
1601 B. Jonson Every Man in his Humor iii. ii. sig. G2 No signior, as I remember you seru'd on a great horse, last generall muster . View more context for this quotation
1632 W. Lithgow Totall Disc. Trav. iii. 89 The Candeots..make muster euery eight day, before the Seriant-maiors.
1667 W. Temple Let. 21 May in Wks. (1720) I. 34 The Levies here and Musters go on with all the Care and Speed this Government is capable of.
1726–31 N. Tindal tr. P. Rapin de Thoyras Hist. Eng. (1743) II. xvii. 89 They took a muster and found their Army amounted to four thousand Foot, and six hundred Horse.
1790 J. White Jrnl. Voy. New S. Wales 124 On a muster of the convicts this morning, some were found to be missing, and supposed to have gone to Botany Bay.
1816 W. Scott Old Mortality ii, in Tales of my Landlord 1st Ser. II. 31 Frequent musters and assemblies of the people, both for military exercise and for sports and pastimes, were appointed by authority.
1837 Colonist (Sydney) 9 Feb. 45/1 The results of the Census taken last year..have at length been officially laid before the public; and we now propose to..compare them with those of former musters.
1864 Chambers's Encycl. VI. 637/1 In regiments of the line, a muster is taken on the 24th of each month; in ships of war, weekly.
1874 J. R. Green Short Hist. Eng. People vii. §6. 410 Catholic lords led their tenantry to the muster at Tilbury.
1960 A. Duggan Family Favourites iv. 60 These Arabs of the desert come to the muster under their own chiefs, so that they are never subject to Roman discipline.
1972 W. S. Ramson in G. W. Turner Good Austral. Eng. ii. 43 Muster, a word from a military context, [was] used..in the colony in reference to an assembly of convicts.
1993 R. Shilts Conduct Unbecoming v. lvi. 526 In order to stave off problems, the colonel called a general muster of the personnel command.
b. In extended use.
ΚΠ
a1533 Ld. Berners tr. A. de Guevara Golden Bk. M. Aurelius (1546) sig. Mm.jv The daie of forgettynge maketh the muster of my thoughtes.
1539 C. Tunstall Serm. Palme Sondaye E vij If a muster shuld be taken of swearers.
1587 T. Churchyard Worthines of Wales sig. K Can Wales be nam'de, and Shropshiere be forgote, The marshes must, make muster with the rest.
1647 J. Fletcher Queene of Corinth ii. iv. 10 Seeke me Upon a better Muster of your manners.
1671 E. Howard Womens Conquest ii. i. 21 We Take as much, if we make a true Muster Of our Mistresses.
1796 E. Burke Two Lett. Peace Regicide Directory France i. 66 In divisions..we are to make a muster of our strength.
1842 E. S. Wortley Maiden of Moscow ii. 50 A nobler muster's made. There marshalled are the minds of men.
1931 P. S. Buck Good Earth vii. 61 So long as Wang Lung and his father were poor and scantily fed the uncle made muster to scratch about on his land and gather enough to feed his seven children.
c. master of the musters n. (also master of the muster) = muster-master n. Similarly commissary of the musters and variants. Now historical.
ΘΚΠ
society > armed hostility > warrior > soldier > leader or commander > officer according to function > [noun] > muster-master
commissary of the musters1548
muster-master1548
chief muster-master1593
muster-master general1593
1548 W. Patten Exped. Scotl. A j b Syr George Blaag, and Syr Thomas Holcroft, Commissioners of the mousters.
1607 J. Cowell Interpreter sig. Vv3v Master of the Kings musters, is a martiall officer in all royall armies most necessarie.
1633 T. Stafford Pacata Hibernia i. xxi. 121 They admonished the President to carrie a strict hand upon the Commissaries of the Musters.
1647 J. Sprigge Anglia Rediviva List of Officers 326 Commissary General Stane, Commissary General of the Musters.
1701 E. Ward Battel without Bloodshed 4 They flock in, in a Cluster, For fear of a Forfeit to th' Master of the Muster.
1785 G. A. Bellamy Apol. Life III. 49 He had been named..deputy Commissary to the musters.
1802 C. James New Mil. Dict. at Commissary- Commissary-general of the musters, or muster-master general.
1893 William & Mary Coll. Q. Hist. Papers Apr. 227 Captain Henry Woodhouse was..master of the muster of Suffolk County, England.
1958 Amer. Hist. Rev. 63 442 Alfred Lacey Hough, a Philadelphia commission merchant who served with the union armies..occupying such posts as commissary of musters for the army of the Cumberland.
1993 Dict. National Biogr.: Missing Persons at Worsley, Benjamin His tenuous hold on office was reduced to his positions as justice of the peace..and commissary-general of musters.
d. Originally Military. to pass muster: to undergo muster or inspection without censure; (later in extended use) to come up to the required standard, to be beyond reproach or criticism; to be taken or accepted as (occasionally for) something. Also †to pass the muster(s).
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > prosperity > success > make a success of [verb (transitive)]
shift?1533
to pass muster1573
to give a good account of (something, often oneself)1601
to hit off1700
to make a job of1736
to make a do of1834
to make a go of it1836
cut1900
the world > relative properties > relationship > equality or equivalence > be or become equal [verb (intransitive)] > be equivalent
amountc1390
to pass for (also as)1463
to come to one purpose1489
weigh1529
to pass muster1573
parallel1626
tantamount1628
to come to the same1643
coextenda1711
muster1820
the mind > attention and judgement > esteem > approval or sanction > quality of being approvable or acceptable > be approved or gain acceptance [verb (intransitive)]
pass1405
to pass muster1573
serve1593
takea1635
take1639
resenta1646
society > armed hostility > military organization > ceremonial > perform ceremony [verb (intransitive)] > undergo muster without censure
to pass muster1573
the world > relative properties > quantity > sufficient quantity, amount, or degree > be sufficient [verb (intransitive)]
sufficec1340
servea1375
stretchc1374
suffiec1380
reach1446
stake1572
to pass muster1855
1573 G. Gascoigne Disc. Aduentures Master F. I. in Hundreth Sundrie Flowres 226 It was deuised in great disquiet of mynd, and written in rage, yet haue I seene much worse passe the musters.
1580 T. Churchyard Pleasaunte Laborinth: Churchyardes Chance 27 A goodly troupe of armed men, did passe the Muster.
1598 Acts Privy Council XXIX. 21 You must have spetiall care that not wone [sic] dwellers, victuallers, horsboyes, hirelinges or vagrant pasvolentes do offer to passe musters in the bandes.
1627 J. Smith Sea Gram. xii. 56 Such a Ship..might well passe muster for a man of warre.
1673 Articles & Rules for better Govt. of H.M. Forces xliv No Muster-Master shall knowingly let any pass the Musters, but such as are qualified.
1689 London Gaz. No. 2426/4 The new Regiment Commanded by the Prince de Steinhuise has pass'd Muster.
1738 J. Swift Compl. Coll. Genteel Conversat. 42 She may pass Muster well enough.
1792 H. H. Brackenridge Mod. Chivalry (1937) I. i.23 It was necessary..for the candidates to procure some token of a philosophical turn of mind..so as just to support some idea of natural knowledge, and pass muster.
1855 W. M. Thackeray Newcomes II. xi. 106 Enough good looks to make her pass muster.
1882 C. E. L. Riddell Prince of Wales's Garden-party 266 Perhaps if her lot had been cast in the present day she might have more than passed muster.
1905 E. M. Forster Where Angels fear to Tread v. 116 He was a tall, weakly-built young man, whose clothes had to be judiciously padded on the shoulder in order to make him pass muster.
1964 C. Chaplin My Autobiogr. viii. 129 Although..we were not a roaring success, we passed muster by comparison with the other acts.
1995 Vancouver Sun 10 Nov. c7/1 If only Clockwork Mice felt less like an exercise in social correctness, it might pass muster as family dramedy.
†e. in muster: assembled for inspection; mustered. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > arrangement or fact of being arranged > state of being gathered together > in/into one place, company, or mass [phrase] > assembled
in muster1595
1595 W. Lisle Babilon 35 In muster generall Two by two, side by side, in ranke they marched all.
1611 B. Jonson Catiline i. sig. B2 When we would repeate Our strengths in Muster, we may name you all, And Furies, vpon you, for Furies, call. View more context for this quotation
1821 Ld. Byron Marino Faliero (2nd issue) iv. ii. 113 Are all the people of our house in muster?
1869 H. B. Stowe Oldtown Folks (1870) xlv. 510 There was a splendid lunch laid out in the parlour, with all the old silver in muster.
1896 A. E. Housman Shropshire Lad lxi. 90 The dead are more in muster At Hughley than the quick.
†f. Payment given to soldiers at a muster. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
society > trade and finance > fees and taxes > payment for labour or service > [noun] > pay of troops > soldier's pay > at a muster
muster1653
1653 in T. Fothergill Deep Sighes Late Souldiers 5 That the said Captain being present with the Troop in September 1651. deprived John Lowes, an old souldier, and another souldier of their muster pretending there was not Roome.
1662 J. Davies tr. A. Olearius Voy. & Trav. Ambassadors 351 While he was in those parts, he pay'd his Army twelve Musters [Fr. douze monstres] together.
1670 C. Cotton tr. G. Girard Hist. Life Duke of Espernon ii. viii. 398 During which time the Army had receiv'd five Musters, and yet complain'd of being ill us'd.
g. U.S. Military muster out n. the action of mustering out; discharge from service. See to muster out at muster v.1 Phrasal verbs.
ΘΚΠ
society > armed hostility > military organization > enlistment or recruitment > discharge from service > [noun]
cassation1602
exauctorationa1654
muster out1889
general discharge1947
bowler-hatting1953
1889 W. F. Fox Regimental Losses in Amer. Civil War i. 4 In each regiment there are men borne on the muster-out rolls as ‘missing in action’.
1892 A. E. Lee Hist. Columbus II. 146 The Fourth Ohio Infantry..returned for muster out, Jun. 12.
1899 U.S. Statutes 30 784 All matters pertaining to the muster out of volunteers.
1917 N.Y. Tribune 28 Mar. 2/3 A War Department order suspending the muster out of all Guard organizations still in the Federal service.
3. = muster roll n. Also: a census report (now historical).
ΘΚΠ
society > armed hostility > military organization > [noun] > muster-roll or -list
muster1565
muster-book1565
list1604
muster roll1608
muster filea1616
society > communication > record > written record > register or record book > [noun] > other types of registers
Domesday Book1178
register1426
white bookc1432
town booka1547
christening book1558
muster1565
minute-book1566
Domes-booke1610
Newgate Calendar1686
time book1786
press book1808
provision book1840
visitors' book1846
guestbook1849
poison book1870
poison register1894
war diary1917
sign-in1966
society > travel > travel by water > one who travels by water or sea > sailor > [noun] > crew > list of
register1695
muster1748
muster roll1809
1565 Gargrave in J. J. Cartwright Chapters Hist. Yorks. (1872) 15 I have ben at York, wher I taryed untyll Tuysday last to have receyvyd the bokes of musters.
1612 F. Bacon Ess. (new ed.) 232 The population may appeare by Musters, and the number and greatnesse of Cities & Towns by Carts and Mappes.
1748 B. Robins & R. Walter Voy. round World by Anson i. i. 5 He knew by the musters that his squadron wanted three hundred seamen of their complement.
1770 T. Percy tr. P. H. Mallet Northern Antiq. I. ix. 228 According to the musters of the Helvetians themselves..they did not exceed three hundred and sixty thousand in all.
1841 C. Dickens Barnaby Rudge xl. 167 I..got put down upon the muster.
1958 Jrnl. Mod. Hist. 30 119 The immense wealth of material contained in the regimental musters that are kept in the casemates of the Fort de Vincennes.
1988 J. C. K. Cornwall Wealth & Society in Early 16th Cent. Eng. (BNC) 114 In 1517 David Cecil took a 21-year lease of land..; not being the freeholder he was not mentioned in the muster.
4. Australian and New Zealand. An act of collecting together cattle, sheep, etc., by riding round a scattered herd and driving it together; a round-up of stock.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > farming > animal husbandry > animal keeping practices general > herding, pasturing, or confining > [noun] > droving > rounding up
calling?a1425
muster1841
roundup1847
mustering1860
rounding up1876
count-muster1891
1841 S. Revans Lett. (MS.) I. 90 I am not yet confident of the mode in which flock and stock musters will be dealt with by the natives.
1867 M. A. Barker Let. in Station Life N.Z. (1870) xx. 173 It is impossible to estimate our loss until the grand muster at shearing.
1884 ‘R. Boldrewood’ Old Melbourne Mem. xiii. 95 All the stockmen in the country came cheerfully to his muster.
1892 W. E. Swanton Notes on N.Z. ii. 97 Previous to the shearing, there is the general muster, which means the rounding up and bringing in of all the sheep, good or bad, on the ‘run’.
1926 A. A. B. Apsley Amateur Settlers 115 A ‘muster’ in many ways is like a miniature Rodeo.
1946 F. D. Davison Dusty ix. 90 The paddock..was not the easiest in the world to lift sheep from, but Tom had a feeling..that the count would show a clean muster.
1956 Coast to Coast 1955–6 35 Whole country's gone dead since muster.
1978 D. G. Jardine Shadows on Hill 34 It was the weaning and dipping muster in the height of summer.
II. Senses relating more generally to demonstration and display.
†5. A pattern, specimen, example, sample. Chiefly commercial in later use. Obsolete.Used from the 16th cent. by British merchants in Asia. In the 18th–19th centuries also frequently in the terminology of the Sheffield cutlery trade.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > kind or sort > individual character or quality > an individual case or instance > [noun] > typical or representative case > part as representative of the whole > sample or specimen
taste1390
muster1400
sample1428
scantillon1465
say1525
casta1556
assay1581
show1582
shave1604
trial1612
essay1614
pattern1648
trial-piece1663
dasha1672
swatch1697
spice1790
sampler1823
1400 in J. Raine Testamenta Eboracensia (1836) I. 260 (MED) vj duodenas mostir bordes & vj brade bordes.
c1450 ( G. Chaucer Bk. Duchess 912 She Was hir [sc. Nature's] chef patron of beaute, And chef ensample of al hir werk And moustre.
1532 (c1385) Usk's Test. Loue in Wks. G. Chaucer ii. f. cccxliv They shulde hete nat dignite, but moustre of badnesse & mayntenour of shrewes.
1578 T. Nicholas tr. F. Lopez de Gómara Pleasant Hist. Conquest W. India 223 To have knowledge of the rivers and mines of gold, and to bring a moster of the same.
1582 in R. Hakluyt Princ. Navigations (1599) II. i. 162 You shall send home into this realme certain Mowsters or pieces of Shew to be brought to the Diershall.
1613 J. May Declar. Estate of Clothing v. 26 They haue a practize..to shut in a fine woofe at both ends of their cloth, which serveth for a muster to shewe.
1698 J. Fryer New Acct. E.-India & Persia 84 Merchants bringing and receiving Musters.
1727 A. Hamilton New Acct. E. Indies I. v. 45 I shewed him the Musters of my Goods.
1748 in G. Hampson Portsmouth Customs Let. Bks. (1994) 14 To Export to Africa..one hundred Cuttanees two hundred fifty Musters twelve Byramputs, [etc.].
c1760 in E. Ives Voy. India (1773) 52 He (the tailer) never measures you; he only asks master for muster, as he terms it, that is for a pattern.
1821 W. Scott Kenilworth II. iv. 72 Your suit should succeed, being..founded in justice and honour, and Elizabeth being the very muster of both.
1879 China Overland Trade Rep. 23 No. 12. 2/3 A few musters of new Teas have been shewn.
†6. The action or an act of showing something; manifestation; exhibition, display. Obsolete. to do muster: to show one's mettle, give proof of prowess.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > manifestation > [noun]
uppingc950
showingOE
propositiona1382
evidencec1384
musterc1400
manifestation?a1425
demonstrationc1450
ostension1474
demonstrance1509
ostentationa1513
forthsetting1528
apparition1533
manifesting1536
outshow1547
objection1554
displaying1556
proclamation1567
discovery1576
remonstrance1583
appearance1587
explicature1592
ostent1600
object1609
showing forth1615
innotescencea1631
presentment1637
deplication1648
display1661
exertion1668
extraversion1675
exhibitiona1677
exertment1696
show-off1776
unfoldment1850
outcrop1854
outplay1859
eclosion1889
the mind > emotion > courage > spirit > show spirit [verb]
to do musterc1400
to stand true vermin1834
spunkc1850
c1400 (c1378) W. Langland Piers Plowman (Laud 581) (1869) B. xiii. 362 (MED) Þorw coueityse..he..menged his marchaundyse and made a gode moustre.
a1425 J. Wyclif Sel. Eng. Wks. (1871) II. 360 (MED) Þei shal be knowun at domesday bi clennes..þat þei ben of Cristis secte, and shulen be taken in aftir his mustre.
c1436 Duke Burgundy (Rome) 6 in R. H. Robbins Hist. Poems 14th & 15th Cent. (1959) 86 (MED) O thou Phelippe..whan wiltow rise And in pleyn felde doo mustre with thy launce?
1477 W. Caxton tr. R. Le Fèvre Hist. Jason (1913) 140 The noble & riche flees wherof Iason made mustre fro ferre.
1538 H. Latimer Let. 13 June in Serm. & Remains (1845) (modernized text) II. 395 She herself, with her old sister of Walsingham [and other images]..would make a jolly muster in Smithfield; they would not be all day in burning.
1577 E. Hellowes tr. A. de Guevara Chron. 45 At these dayes the pillers giue a muster vpon the fierce waters: declaring the pryde of his power.
1581 R. Mulcaster Positions xxxvii. 151 They begin to make some muster and shew of their learning.
1602 R. Carew Surv. Cornwall i. f. 75v You shall hardly find an assembly of boyes, in Deuon or Cornwall, where the most vntowardly amongst them, will not as readily giue you a muster of this exercise [sc. wrestling], as you are prone to require it.
1603 G. Owen Descr. Penbrokshire (1892) 80 Wyndowes of this stone would make the like varietie and muster to the eye.
a1661 T. Fuller tr. Record of Henry V in Worthies (1662) i. 50 He, that useth such Arms or Coats of Arms, shall on the day of his Muster [L. die Monstrationis suæ], manifestly shew..by virtue of whose gift he enjoyeth the same.
7. A collection or group (of peacocks).One of many alleged group terms found in late Middle English glossarial sources, but not otherwise substantiated. Apparently revived in the early 19th cent.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > birds > order Galliformes (fowls) > family Phasianidae (pheasants, etc.) > [noun] > paro cristatus (peafowl) > group of
mustera1450
a1450 Terms Assoc. in PMLA (1936) 51 603 (MED) A Moustere of pokekys.
1696 E. Phillips New World of Words (new ed.) Muster of Peacocks, a term for a Flock of Peacocks.
1819 W. Irving Sketch Bk. v. 403 Master Simon..told me that, according to the most ancient and approved treatise on hunting, I must say a muster of peacocks.
1847 N. P. Willis Misc. Wks. 142 A walk of snipes, a fall of woodcocks, a muster of peacocks.
1928 F. Pitt Tom, my Peacock i. 11 ‘Muster’ was the term used in days of old to denote a company of peafowl.
1997 Daily Tel. Aug. 9/1 The destructive activities of a muster of peacocks who have chewed up garden flowers, eaten wreaths off graves and wreaked havoc in a church have angered residents in a historic village.
†8. An astronomical instrument; (perhaps) a dial, a clock. Obsolete. rare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the universe > cosmology > science of observation > astronomical instruments > [noun]
musterc1450
alidadea1500
c1450 (?a1400) Wars Alexander (Ashm.) 130 (MED) He toke..Astralalus [read Astralabus] algate..In adrentes [read Quadrentis] coruen all of quyte..Mustours & mekil quat mare þen a littill.

Compounds

C1.
muster day n.
ΘΚΠ
society > armed hostility > military organization > ceremonial > [noun] > muster > day of
muster day1551
1551 King Edward VI Chron. & Polit. Papers (1966) (modernized text) 89 The gendarmery on the muster day should be assaulted by 2,000 footmen.
1574–5 Treasurer's Accts. Burgh Haddington 21 To Paull Fasyde swyssar to stryk the drum affoir the toun on the mustar day.
1875 Encycl. Brit. II. 562/1 The conscripts then took the military oath, sacramentum, and were dismissed until the appointed muster-day.
1994 Jrnl. Amer. Hist. 81 1288 The militia..did little other than turn out for muster day.
muster drum n.
ΚΠ
1849 W. E. Aytoun Scheik of Sinai in Lays Sc. Cavaliers 273 Each morning, in the market-place, The muster-drum is beat.
1876 W. Thornbury Hist. & Legendary Ballads & Songs 222 A rolling of the muster drums Was heard along the line.
muster field n.
ΚΠ
a1784 R. Munford Patriots ii. 78 (stage direct.) A muster-field (in the court-yard.)
1838 B. Drake Tales & Sketches 179 Our sons..assembling in the ‘muster field’, divide themselves into armies, and pelt each other with Buckeye balls.
1994 Jrnl. Southern Hist. 60 483 Tavern keepers..hosted regular barbecues during the summer campaign season, usually at camp-grounds or muster fields.
muster ground n.
ΚΠ
a1784 R. Munford Patriots ii. i. 78 Come, let us go into the muster-ground.
1798 Deb. Congr. U.S. 15 May (1851) 1707 At the muster ground on the Commons of Portsmouth.
1874 G. Bancroft Hist. U.S. X. viii. 192 The chosen muster-ground of the most various elements of human culture brought together by men.
1964 R. Hugo Fort Casey, without Guns in Five Poets of Pacific Northwest 42 Straw bales on the muster ground deny A need for war.
muster parade n.
ΚΠ
1875 R. Nevitt Let. 1 Mar. in H. A. Dempsey Winter at Fort Macleod 65 This morning I had to appear at the usual monthly Muster Parade.
1947 J. Bertram Shadow of War vi. iii. 190 ‘Tenko’—the morning and evening muster parade..that was routine in all prison camps in Japan.
1981 Notes & Queries June 218/1 The muster parades, normally held every two months, at which the soldiers present were checked against the muster-roll, and the regiment's pay calculated.
muster-place n.
ΚΠ
1649 Kingdomes Faithfull Scout No. 37. 269 The K. of Denmark addressed himself to the E. of Oldenberg..& desired of him..that he might have liberty to levy men in his Dominions, and a free Muster place for them.
1832 W. E. Aytoun Poland, Homer & Other Poems 45 The clouds are gathering in their muster-place.
muster room n.
ΚΠ
1891 New Eng. Mag. May 373/2 Captain brown..says that when he entered the muster-room, Lovejoy was the centre of a group earnestly discussing the situation.
1980 N.Y. Times (Nexis) 2 July b2/1 For several weeks, the blackboard in the muster room of the Fifth Precinct station house..carried this message: ‘Softball, 9 A.M. Thursday.’
1990 J. Welch Indian Lawyer 14 A couple of officers talked in low tones in the muster room next door and Harwood couldn't see or understand them.
C2.
muster-card n. rare a pattern card.Apparently only attested in dictionaries or glossaries.
ΚΠ
1908 N.E.D. at Muster sb.1 Muster-card.
† muster file n. Obsolete rare a muster roll.
ΘΚΠ
society > armed hostility > military organization > [noun] > muster-roll or -list
muster1565
muster-book1565
list1604
muster roll1608
muster filea1616
a1616 W. Shakespeare All's Well that ends Well (1623) iv. iii. 171 So that the muster file, rotten and sound, vppon my life amounts not to fifteene thousand pole. View more context for this quotation
† muster-maker n. Obsolete rare (probably) the reviewing officer at a muster.
ΚΠ
1586 Earl of Leicester Corr. (1844) 278 But, betwene the auditor and the muster-maker, you will easilie find the faults.
† muster mistress n. humorous Obsolete rare a female muster-master.
ΚΠ
1599 G. Chapman Humerous Dayes Myrth sig. Ev He was taken learning trickes at old Lucilas house the muster mistris of all the smocktearers in Paris.
muster paper n. (a) a muster roll; (b) Nautical paper used to make ships' books (now historical).
ΚΠ
1840 C. F. Hoffman Greyslaer I. x. 111 I let ye put down my name on your muster-paper there, as making myself a raal sodger under you.
1867 W. H. Smyth & E. Belcher Sailor's Word-bk. 489 Muster paper, a description of paper supplied from the dockyards, ruled and headed, for making ships' books.
muster party n. Australian an expedition to muster cattle on a run.
ΚΠ
1876 ‘R. Boldrewood’ Colonial Reformer xii, in Austral. Town & Country Jrnl. (Sydney) 23 Sept. 502/3 These muster parties were extremely congenial to Mr. Neuchamp's tastes and tendencies.
muster station n. a place where a muster is held; (now) esp. an area of a ship where passengers are directed to assemble in case of emergency.
ΚΠ
1820 Sydney Gaz. 9 Sept. 2/1 It is further ordered and directed that the Clerk of the General Muster do furnish to the Principal or Senior Magistrate at each Muster Station, a suitable Book and Form for the taking the said Musters.
1892 ‘P. Warung’ Tales Convict Syst. 2 Oatlands, a small township in the midlands of Van Diemen's Land, which has gradually grown up round a convict ‘muster-station’.
1980 Washington Post (Nexis) 14 Sept. e8 We quickly boarded, changed into something more casual, and proceeded to the muster station on deck.
1990 Connections (Sealink Brit. Ferries) Apr. 8 Be sure you know where your nearest Muster Station (assembly point) is located.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2003; most recently modified version published online June 2022).

† mustern.2

Forms: late Middle English–1500s muster, 1500s mowster.
Origin: Formed within English, by clipping or shortening. Etymon: musterdevillers n.
Etymology: Shortened < musterdevillers n.
Obsolete.
= musterdevillers n. More fully muster-cloth.
ΘΚΠ
the world > textiles and clothing > textiles > textile fabric or an article of textile fabric > textile fabric > textile fabric made from specific material > made from wool > [noun] > of specific colour > grey
musterdevillersc1407
muster1431
Carmelite1828
1431–2 in C. M. Woolgar Househ. Accts. Medieval Eng. (1992) II. 531 In xx ulnis panni linei vocati Mustercloth'.
1466 in Manners & Househ. Expenses Eng. (1841) 170 Item, my mastyr owyth hym for ij yerdes of muster.
1549 Act 3 & 4 Edw. VI c. 2 §1 Russetes, Musters, Marbles, Grayes, Royes, and suche lyke colors.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2003; most recently modified version published online December 2020).

musterv.1

Brit. /ˈmʌstə/, U.S. /ˈməstər/
Forms:

α. Middle English mistre, Middle English moostre, Middle English mostere, Middle English moustur, Middle English mowster, Middle English mustere, Middle English mustir, Middle English mustyr, Middle English mvster, Middle English (1900s– English regional) mouster, Middle English–1500s mostre, Middle English–1500s moustre, Middle English–1600s mustre, Middle English– muster, 1500s mustoure, 1500s mustur, 1500s musture, 1500s (1800s– English regional (south-western)) mooster; Scottish pre-1700 mooster, pre-1700 mouster, pre-1700 moustour, pre-1700 moustre, pre-1700 mowsture, pre-1700 mustar, pre-1700 mustare, pre-1700 mustir, pre-1700 mustur, pre-1700 mustyr, pre-1700 mustyrr, pre-1700 1700s– muster.

β. Middle English–1500s monstre, 1500s monster, 1500s mounster.

Origin: A borrowing from French. Etymons: French monstrer, mostrer.
Etymology: < Anglo-Norman monstrer, mouster, moustrer, mustrer, mustir, etc., to show, display, demonstrate, expound, (of soldiers, an army) to assemble, and Middle French mostrer, moustrer, monstrer to show, display (10th cent. in Old French in past participle in form mostret ), to inspect, review (late 14th cent.; French montrer ) < classical Latin mōnstrāre (see monstrate v.), in post-classical Latin also in spec. military sense (from 13th cent. in British sources). Compare post-classical Latin mustrare (873). Compare Old Occitan mostrar (12th cent.), Italian mostrare (late 12th cent.), Spanish mostrar (early 13th cent.), Portuguese mostrar (1261); also Middle Dutch monsteren, monstren (Dutch monsteren), Middle High German mustern (German mustern).See note s.v. muster n.1 for discussion of β. forms. In military use the forms with -n- may have been due to the influence of Dutch monsteren.
†1.
a. transitive. To show, show forth, display, exhibit; to report, tell, explain. Sometimes with clause as object. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > manifestation > [verb (transitive)]
uppec897
atewOE
sutelec1000
openOE
awnc1175
kithec1175
forthteec1200
tawnec1220
let witc1275
forthshowa1300
to pilt out?a1300
showa1300
barea1325
mythc1330
unfoldc1374
to open outc1390
assign1398
mustera1400
reyve?a1400
vouchc1400
manifest?a1425
outshowc1425
ostendc1429
explayc1443
objecta1500
reveala1500
patefy?1509
decipher1529
relieve1533
to set outa1540
utter1542
report1548
unbuckle1548
to set forth1551
demonstrate1553
to hold forth1560
testify1560
explicate1565
forthsetc1565
to give show of1567
denudec1572
exhibit1573
apparent1577
display?1578
carry1580
cipher1583
laya1586
foreshow1590
uncloud?1594
vision1594
explain1597
proclaim1597
unroll1598
discloud1600
remonstrate1601
resent1602
to bring out1608
palesate1613
pronounce1615
to speak out1623
elicit1641
confess1646
bear1657
breathe1667
outplay1702
to throw out1741
evolve1744
announce1781
develop1806
exfoliate1808
evince1829
exposit1882
pack1925
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) 9512 Þat suilk a man cuth think in thoght þat mustre þat mercle moght?
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) 25523 (MED) Þat ilk time þore mistred [a1400 Gött. mustrid; a1400 Fairf. shewed] þe, Suet iesu! wit hert sa fre, To maria magdalene.
?a1400 (a1338) R. Mannyng Chron. (Petyt) ii. 209 (MED) To þe pape of Rome þei mostred þer resoun.
a1425 (?a1350) Gospel of Nicodemus (Galba) (1907) 51 (MED) His miracles musters his might.
a1425 Rule St. Benet (Lansd.) (1902) 2 In þis sentence, mustirs sain bent us hu we sal lede ure lif.
?a1425 (?c1350) Northern Passion (Rawl.) 144 (MED) Þe process clerely to declare, Here I sall yhit muster mare.
a1450 York Plays (1885) 6 Ande in my fyrste makyng to mustyr my mighte,..I byd in my blyssyng ȝhe aungels gyf lyghte.
?1473 W. Caxton tr. R. Le Fèvre Recuyell Hist. Troye (1894) I. lf. 72 In mustryng and shewyng your corayges.
a1500 (?c1450) Merlin 407 (MED) Wondres a-monge his enmyes..dide Galashin, that often was he shewed, and mustred with the fynger on bothe sides.
1548 Hall's Vnion: Henry VIII f. lxxiijv Anticke images of gold..mounsteryng their countenaunces towardes the enteryng of the palaice.
1598 W. Rankins Seauen Satyres (1948) Ded. 3 These rough cast Satyres, which are not absurded (though somewhat rustically mustred).
1622 R. Hawkins Observ. Voiage South Sea lix. 139 If they had come to boord with the Spanish high-charged ships, it is not to be doubted but they would haue mustred themselues better, then those which could not with their prowesse nor props, haue reached to their wastes.
a1625 J. Fletcher Humorous Lieut. iv. ii, in F. Beaumont & J. Fletcher Comedies & Trag. (1647) 137/2 Since ye take a pride to show your follies, I'le muster 'em, and all the world shall view 'em.
b. intransitive. To show, to appear, to be displayed; to make a (good, bad, etc.) appearance. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > sight and vision > visibility > be visible [verb (intransitive)] > appear or become visible
ariseOE
to come in (also to, on, etc.) placec1225
'peara1382
appear1382
kithea1400
to show out?a1425
muster?1435
to come forthc1449
to look outa1470
apparish1483
to show forth1487
come1531
to come out?1548
peer1568
to look through1573
glimpse1596
loom1605
rise1615
emicate1657
emike1657
present1664
opena1691
emerge1700
dawn1744
to come down the pike1812
to open out1813
to crop out1849
unmask1858
to come through1868
to show up1879
to come (etc.) out of thin air1932
surface1961
?1435 ( J. Lydgate Minor Poems (1934) ii. 631 (MED) So this Citee..For ioye moustred lyke the sonne beem.
a1450 (c1412) T. Hoccleve De Regimine Principum (Harl. 4866) (1897) 415 (MED) Vndir an old pore habyt regneþ oft Grete vertu, þogh it moustre porely.
a1522 G. Douglas tr. Virgil Æneid (1959) x. xiii. 31 Sik like Mezentius mustyrris in the feyld, With huge armour, baith speyr, helm, and scheyld.
a1522 G. Douglas tr. Virgil Æneid (1960) xii. vi. 41 And haltandly in his cart for the nanis He skippis vp and musturis wantonly.
1533 J. Bellenden tr. Livy Hist. Rome (1901) I. iii. iii. 251 For þe nobill palacis and towris musturit so aufully within þe ciete, þat þai drewe þe myndis of equis and wolchis fra all segeing.
1565 J. Calfhill Aunswere Treat. Crosse f. 167v When the Papists beholde the work of their owne hands, the Crosse it self, fayre mustering in ye church, which might peraduenture haue bene a logge for the chimney.
1578 H. Lyte tr. R. Dodoens Niewe Herball vi. i. 653 When these buddes do open and spreade, the sweete and pleasant Roses do muster and shewe foorth of colour white.
1597 F. Bacon Ess. f. 21v And this maketh the greater shew if it be done without order, for confusion maketh things muster more.
c. transitive. Perhaps: to exemplify (a particular skill or quality). Obsolete. rare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > kind or sort > individual character or quality > an individual case or instance > find or furnish an instance or example of [verb (transitive)]
examplea1393
exemply?a1425
exemplify?a1439
mustera1616
a1616 W. Shakespeare All's Well that ends Well (1623) ii. i. 52 They weare themselues in the cap of the time, there do muster true gate; eat, speake, and moue vnder the influence of the most receiu'd starre. View more context for this quotation
2.
a. intransitive. Of an army, etc.: to come together for inspection, exercise, etc., or in preparation for battle. Frequently in figurative context. Cf. sense 3a.In quot. 1658: to present oneself for a muster.
ΘΚΠ
society > armed hostility > military organization > enlistment or recruitment > enlist (soldiers) [verb (transitive)]
wagec1330
musterc1425
to take upc1425
prest1481
to call up1523
conscribe1548
enrol1576
matriculate1577
press1600
in list1604
list1643
recruita1661
enlist1699
crimp1789
to muster into service1834
book1843
induct1934
to read in1938
the world > space > relative position > arrangement or fact of being arranged > state of being gathered together > gather together [verb (intransitive)] > specifically of people or animals
gathera975
ensemblea1300
drawc1300
semble1389
herd1393
assemblea1400
routa1400
sanka1400
trume?a1400
musterc1425
convene1429
resemblea1450
to draw together1455
forgather1513
accompany1534
troop1565
congregate1570
to get together1575
parliament?1589
accoil1590
join1706
to roll up1817
congressa1850
to round up1879
the world > relative properties > kind or sort > generality > condition or state of being inclusive > include [verb (transitive)] > count in or include among
reckona1382
numberc1384
accountc1390
musterc1425
counta1530
adnumber?1531
marshal1559
recount1564
calculate1643
c1425 J. Lydgate Troyyes Bk. (Augustus A.iv) iii. 674 (MED) Kyng Honux..In ordre hadde of wardis þe þrittene, Proudly mowsteryng endelong þe grene.
1439 Rolls of Parl. V. 32/2 Diversez and many Souldeours..have mustred and entred in of record the Kyngs Souldeours.
a1450 (c1410) H. Lovelich Hist. Holy Grail xlv. 150 Eche Man In his beste Aray, To-forn him they Mostred þere þat day.
?1473 W. Caxton tr. R. Le Fèvre Recuyell Hist. Troye (1894) I. lf. 71 Whan alle thassamble had mustryd and were gaderd to gyder.
1523 Ld. Berners tr. J. Froissart Cronycles I. ccliv. 154 They went & mostred before the bastide of Arde.
1535 Bible (Coverdale) 1 Kings xx. 27 The children of Israel mustured,..and wente to mete them, and pitched their tentes ouer against them.
1594 W. Shakespeare Lucrece sig. D3v Whose ranks of blew vains..mustring to the quiet Cabinet, Where their deare gouernesse and ladie lies, Do tell her shee is dreadfullie beset.
1594 W. Shakespeare Lucrece sig. F2 Besides his soules faire temple is defaced, To whose weake ruines muster troopes of cares. View more context for this quotation
a1657 W. Mure Misc. Poems in Wks. 5 A field of fancies musterd in my mynd.
1658 J. Shirley Honoria & Mammon 20 We will have tilting too, and feats of Chivalry At Court where I'l defend my Aurelia Princess, In the guilt armour that I mustered in.
1669 Haddington Burgh Rec. 2 Oct. in Dict. Older Sc. Tongue (at cited word) The militia regement are to mouster shortlie.
1689 H. Pitman Relation Great Sufferings 23 When the young ones [sc. turtles] are hatcht, they musters out of their Cells and marches into the Sea.
1700 R. Blackmore Paraphr. Job xxxvi. 158 Recruits of Vapours which arise, Drawn from the Sea to muster in the Skys.
1775 A. Cooke in J. Sparks Corr. Amer. Revol. (1853) I. 19 The country round were alarmed and mustering.
1849 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. I. ii. 186 At every conventicle they mustered in arms.
1874 J. R. Green Short Hist. Eng. People iii. §7. 152 The royal army had already mustered in great force at the King's summons.
1911 J. Masefield in Eng. Rev. 9 379 The firemen were mustering, The half-dressed stable men were flustering.
1995 Golf Digest Aug. 92/2 The exercise is complicated by an army of children, horses and hounds mustering on the Portaferry side.
b. transitive. To collect or assemble (esp. soldiers) to be counted, inspected as to condition and equipment, exercised, displayed, enlisted into service, or sent into battle. Also intransitive: to call a muster. Also figurative. †to muster one's arms: (of an army) to appear armed in battle array (obsolete).
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > arrangement or fact of being arranged > state of being gathered together > gather together [verb (transitive)] > assemble (people or animals) > for inspection or review
muster1440
paradea1753
society > armed hostility > military organization > ceremonial > perform ceremony [verb (transitive)] > muster
muster1560
to muster upa1593
show1600
Promptorium Parvulorum (Harl. 221) 349 Musteryn or gadyr to-gedur, commonstro, coaduno.
a1500 (?c1450) Merlin 560 (MED) Thei moustred and assembled all the peple that thei myght gete.
1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 643/1 I muster, I take the muster of men, as a capytayne doth, je fais les monstres. What place wyll you sygne to muster your folkes in.
1548 Hall's Vnion: Henry VI f. clxiiijv How busy he was in mustering, howe diligent in setting forward.
1557 Act 4 & 5 Philip & Mary c. 3 §1 Commaundment hathe bene given..to divers..persons to muster their Majesties People..and to levie a nomber of them for the Service of their Majesties.
1560 J. Daus tr. J. Sleidane Commentaries f. cxxxvijv This man would haue also footemen ready monstered.
1595 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 3 ii. i. 112 I then in London..Mustred my souldiers.
1609 R. Cawdrey Table Alphabet. (ed. 2) Muster, take view of men, or armour.
1647 N. Bacon Hist. Disc. Govt. 64 They mustered their armes once every yeere both in Towns and Hundreds.
1682 J. Bunyan Holy War 52 When the King had mustered his Forces, (for it is he that mustereth the Host to the Battel) he gave [etc.] . View more context for this quotation
1700 R. Blackmore Paraphr. Job xv. 67 She'll draw her Troops of Terrors in array, Muster her Griefs, and horrid War display.
1717 Boston News-let. 1 Apr. 2/1 Finding they [sc. the English] could not Muster above 80 Men together (the rest being in the Lagoons) The Spaniards being 600 Men, they..surrender'd.
1793 J. Hunter Hist. Jrnl. Trans. Port Jackson xiv. 361 [In 1789] I gave orders for the convicts to be mustered in their huts three times every night.
1799 Med. & Physical Jrnl. 1 93 On Sundays, when they were mustered by the commanding officer.
1804 Sydney Gaz. 1 Mar. The superintendants at the different settlements are to muster the Prisoners at Public Labour every Sunday Morning before divine service.
1865 W. G. Palgrave Narr. Journey through Arabia II. 275 Before long he had mustered and equipped about thirty frigates.
1879 J. A. Froude Cæsar xv. 241 All sides were mustering their forces in view of an impending fight.
1894 J. T. Fowler in St. Adamnan Vita S. Columbae Introd. 61 The Clan Neill, mustered by Columba himself.
1932 G. Greene Stamboul Train ii. i. 78 Meanwhile the government was able to muster police reinforcements, and with the help of a platoon of soldiers and a couple of field-guns, the police recaptured the post office.
1988 D. A. Thomas Compan. Royal Navy iii. 249/2 Prince Rupert joined Albemarle, which allowed the English to muster about sixty ships.
c. transitive (reflexive). To assemble in readiness for action.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > arrangement or fact of being arranged > state of being gathered together > gather together [verb (reflexive)] > specifically of people or animals
gather921
ensemble1533
muster1535
congregate1570
1535 Bible (Coverdale) Isa. viii. C Mustre you and gather you, take youre councel together.
1569 R. Grafton Chron. II. 327 So that at the last they mustered themselues, and they were aboue ten thousand men.
1594 T. Bowes tr. P. de la Primaudaye French Acad. II. To Rdr. sig. b4v Those lewde and lasciuious bookes, which haue mustered themselues of late yeeres in Pauls Churchyard, as chosen souldiers ready to fight vnder the deuils banner.
a1644 B. Twyne in A. Wood Life & Times (1891) I. 60 That afternoone they mustered themselves in the fields.
1811 Sydney Gaz. 23 Feb. 1/1 Many Persons have omitted to come forward and muster themselves.
1900 W. Alexander Finding of Bk. 160 They gather and muster themselves.
1958 R. K. Narayan Guide vi. 85 They were mustering themselves to attack the other group.
1981 K. A. McClane To hear River 38 Children must come and muster themselves by this stone.
d. transitive. Of an army, etc.: to number; to comprise (a specified number).
ΘΚΠ
society > armed hostility > armed forces > create military forces [verb (transitive)] > of force: comprise (spec. number)
muster1810
the world > relative properties > number > enumeration, reckoning, or calculation > number, calculate, or reckon [verb (transitive)] > amount to or total
makeOE
amountc1350
be?c1425
draw1425
numbera1450
numbera1586
to sum up1597
give1634
mount1639
tantamount1659
compute1667
muster1810
total1859
subtotal1906
1810 J. Porter Sc. Chiefs II. iii. 54 ‘We just muster five hundred men,’ said Ker, advancing from the lines to Wallace; ‘but they are all as stout in heart as condition.’
1837 W. Irving Adventures Capt. Bonneville III. 6 The whole garrison mustered but six or eight men.
1851 R. Hussey Rise Papal Power i. 2 Formed a Synod of their own, mustering about 80.
1877 Spirit of Times 24 Nov. 439/3 We mustered seven strong, and thought we had the surest kind of a sure thing.
1907 Athenæum 18 May 597/2 Davout's corps..defeated a force comprising the choicest part of the Prussian army, and mustering nearly double its numbers.
1991 M. Brogden On Mersey Beat (BNC) 62 There was a parade of the Liverpool City force..on the occasion of the annual inspection. The force mustered 1,209 strong.
†e. transitive. To produce for inspection. Obsolete. rare.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > manifestation > offering for inspection or consideration > offer for inspection or consideration [verb (transitive)]
i-taechec888
to lay … beforec1000
showlOE
givec1175
to lay outc1440
produce1459
propose1548
cite1549
product1563
broach1573
offer1583
to hold up1604
to bring in1608
project1611
to bring ona1715
to trot out1838
to bring up1868
muster1904
1904 19th Cent. June 1033 The bluejacket may at any moment be called on to muster his kit.
3.
a. intransitive. To assemble, collect, gather together in a body.Overlapping with figurative use of sense 2a.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > arrangement or fact of being arranged > state of being gathered together > gather together [verb (intransitive)]
musterc1560
amass1572
accumulate1613
piece1622
rally1647
rendezvous1662
herd1704
collect1794
congest1859
mass1861
c1560 Hunting of Cheviot ix, in F. J. Child Eng. & Sc. Pop. Ballads (1889) III. vi. 311/1 The bowmen mustered on the hills.
1567 G. Fenton tr. M. Bandello Certaine Tragicall Disc. f. 245v Whereof I wishe some suche as I coulde name to mooster in the mowthe of a trench..to thende they might both witnes the daunger, and be partakers of the perill of warr.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Measure for Measure (1623) ii. iv. 20 Oh, heauens Why doe's my bloud thus muster to my heart. View more context for this quotation
1687 A. Lovell tr. J. de Thévenot Trav. into Levant i. 57 They burn Incense about him, which they say scares away Evil Spirits and Devils, who otherwise would muster about the [dead] Body.
1735 S. Bowden Poet. Ess. II. 49 From their Coverts Fairies rally, And muster in some lonely Vally.
1820 W. Scott Abbot I. iii. 48 I think he comes of gentle blood—see how it musters in his face at your injurious reproof.
1869 J. R. Lowell Gold Egg xxv What marvels manifold, Seemed silently to muster!
1883 R. L. Stevenson in Mag. of Art Apr. 273/2 Nothing remains of the days of Drake but the faithful trade-wind scattering the smoke, the fogs that will begin to muster about sundown.
1886 C. E. Pascoe London of To-day (ed. 3) xviii. 159 The members of the Four-in-Hand and Coaching clubs muster in great force.
1929 R. Hughes High Wind in Jamaica vii. 163 When dinner-time came, the children mustered for their soup and biscuit.
1979 J. Grimond Memoirs vi. 103 Scapa Flow, that sheet of enclosed water where the Norse fleets had mustered a thousand years ago was once more bristling with warships.
1987 Packet (Camborne) 30 July 21/2 The guides and brownies mustered for a parade led by the town band.
1989 A. Dillard Writing Life iii. 43 At the sound of my ax..real islanders, proper, wood-splitting islanders..mustered..under the firs.
†b. intransitive. to muster strong: to assemble or be present in great numbers. Also figurative. Obsolete.In quot. 1915 used humorously of a single person.
ΚΠ
1790 G. Colman Battle of Hexham i. 12 Tho' they do muster strong, we may make Edward's party skip, if we have but justice on our side.
1845 W. M. Thackeray Legend of Rhine in G. Cruickshank Table Bk. Aug. I. viii. 170 His Grace..gives an archery meeting once a year, and prizes for which we toxophilites muster strong.
1877 A. Domett Song for Family Party in Flotsam & Jetsam Pt. 1st 18 By the old convivial table Where we oft have mustered strong.
1894 S. F. Adams Summer Recoll. 154 March winds muster strong.
1915 Our Navy (U.S.) Dec. 58 One evening I had been skylarking in the gymnasium and sprained my thumb. The next day being Battalion Day I mustered strong at the sick bay.
4.
†a. transitive. To take the census of. Obsolete. rare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > number > enumeration, reckoning, or calculation > number, calculate, or reckon [verb (transitive)] > count people
tell1511
muster1565
poll1649
to tell off1727
census1881
1565 T. Cooper Thesaurus Censor,..one that valueth or mustreth.
1636 R. Basset tr. G. A. de Paoli Lives Rom. Emperors 13 In the eigth yeere of his reigne hee mustred the City.
†b. transitive. To enlist, to enrol. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > record > written record > register or record book > register [verb (transitive)]
book?c1225
descrivec1325
registera1393
rollc1440
describea1475
regestc1475
act1492
enregister1523
registrate1570
to book up1577
matriculate1586
imbook1587
muster1587
immatriculate1602
imbreviate1609
re-register1807
to check in or out1918
1587 Sir P. Sidney & A. Golding tr. P. de Mornay Trewnesse Christian Relig. xxx. 562 Bycause he yelded his Soule vnto death, and did muster himself among the transgressers.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Cymbeline (1623) iv. iv. 10 Newnesse Of Clotens death (we being not knowne, not muster'd Among the Bands) may driue vs to a render Where we haue liu'd. View more context for this quotation
1715 A. Pennecuik Curious Coll. Scotish Poems in Geogr., Hist. Descr. Tweeddale App. 52 No less for Bachus shall kind Colcoat's name, Be Mustered in the Registers of Fame.
1748 T. Smollett Roderick Random I. xxvii. 244 I had been rated on the books, and mustered as surgeon's mate.
c. transitive. Chiefly Nautical in later use. To call the roll of (a crew, a watch, etc.).
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > naming > give a name to [verb (transitive)] > call roll of
muster1670
to muster in1840
the world > relative properties > number > enumeration, reckoning, or calculation > number, calculate, or reckon [verb (transitive)] > again
muster1670
recount1764
renumber1827
revise1877
society > travel > travel by water > seafaring life > [verb (transitive)] > muster crew or watch
muster1820
the world > relative properties > number > enumeration, reckoning, or calculation > number, calculate, or reckon [verb (transitive)] > count people > call a roll
to call over1587
muster1820
roll-call1928
1670 J. Eachard Grounds Contempt of Clergy 48 He falls a fighting with his Text,..then he musters all again, to see what word was lost, or lam'd in the Skirmish.
1820 W. Scoresby Acct. Arctic Regions II. 199 When the crew have been mustered by the proper officer of the customs, and paid a month's wages in advance.
1851 H. Melville Moby-Dick cxxxiv. 619 Upon mustering the company, the Parsee was not there.
1867 W. H. Smyth & E. Belcher Sailor's Word-bk. Muster the watch, a duty performed nightly at 8 p.m., and repeated when the watch is relieved up to 4 a.m.
1897 J. Conrad Nigger of ‘Narcissus’ i. 13 You were mustering the crew. Naturally I called out my name. I thought you had it on your list.
1961 19th-cent. Fiction 15 302 Mr. Baker is mustering the crew. Seventeen men answer to the roll call.
1995 Jrnl. Negro Hist. 80 75 Etheridge mustered the crew.
d. transitive. U.S. to muster into service: to enrol into military service. to muster out of service: to summon together (soldiers, etc.) in order to discharge from service; to discharge, pay off. Frequently in passive. Cf. senses to muster in, to muster out at Phrasal verbs.
ΘΚΠ
society > armed hostility > military organization > enlistment or recruitment > enlist (soldiers) [verb (transitive)]
wagec1330
musterc1425
to take upc1425
prest1481
to call up1523
conscribe1548
enrol1576
matriculate1577
press1600
in list1604
list1643
recruita1661
enlist1699
crimp1789
to muster into service1834
book1843
induct1934
to read in1938
society > armed hostility > military organization > enlistment or recruitment > discharge from service > [verb (transitive)]
cash1564
cast1587
cashier1599
to muster out of service1834
retire1852
pluck1911
1834 J. A. Wakefield Hist. War 93 The place appointed for us to be discharged at (or mustered out of the service of the United States).
1846 W. H. Richardson Jrnl. 7 Aug. (1928) 18 We met our first Lieutenant, just from the Fort. He told us to hurry and get mustered into service before the other companies should crowd in.
1862 U.S. Statutes 12 339 No person under the age of eighteen shall be mustered into the United States service.
1899 T. Roosevelt Rough Riders vi. 233 The fortitude displayed by the men of your regiment, who have come before me to be mustered out of service.
1956 J. Barth Floating Opera vii. 74 I was mustered out of service in 1919 and entered Johns Hopkins University.
1993 Fortune 8 Feb. 84/3 300,000 soldiers, sailors, and fliers have been mustered out of the service.
5.
a. transitive. To collect up, bring together; esp. to gather up from one's own reserves. Cf. to muster up at Phrasal verbs.Frequently in I (also he, she, etc.) can muster (a specified number or amount); as many as I (also he, she, etc.) can muster.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > arrangement or fact of being arranged > state of being gathered together > gather together [verb (transitive)]
somnec825
heapc900
gathera975
samc1000
to set togetherc1275
fang1340
assemblec1374
recueilc1380
drawa1393
to draw togethera1398
semblea1400
congatherc1400
congregatec1400
to take together1490
recollect1513
to gather togetherc1515
to get together1523
congesta1552
confer1552
collect1573
ingatherc1575
ramass1586
upgather1590
to muster upa1593
accrue1594
musterc1595
compone1613
herd1615
contract1620
recoil1632
comporta1641
rally1643
rendezvous1670
purse1809
adduct1824
to round up1873
reeve1876
to pull together1925
c1595 Countess of Pembroke Psalme lxxxi. 5 in Coll. Wks. (1998) II. 117 Muster hither musicks ioyes, Lute, and lyre, and tabretts noise.
1656 J. Harrington Common-wealth of Oceana 179 A Cause being introduced, and the people Mustered or Assembled for the Decision of the same.
1692 R. L'Estrange Fables xxxiii. 32 A Daw that had a mind to be Sparkish, Trick'd himself up with all the Gay-Feathers he could Muster together.
1743 J. Bulkeley & J. Cummins Voy. to South-seas 16 All the Hands we could muster in both Watches, Officers included, were but twelve.
1748 B. Robins & R. Walter Voy. round World by Anson ii. ii. 135 All the..remnants of old sails that could be mustered.
1793 J. Smeaton Narr. Edystone Lighthouse (ed. 2) §286 I melted down all the pewter plates and dishes that we could muster on board the buss.
1832 H. Martineau Ireland ii. 16 A respectable addition was made by them to the few shillings Sullivan had been able to muster.
1835 J. P. Kennedy Horse-shoe Robinson I. ii. 31 I mustered my horse and gun, and some decent clothes.
1841 E. Bulwer-Lytton Night & Morning I. i. iv. 66 With your wife's fortune, you muster 2000l. a-year.
1855 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. III. xii. 175 A procession of twenty coaches belonging to public functionaries was mustered.
1886 T. Hardy Mayor of Casterbridge II. xvi. 224 The rusty-jointed executors of the law mustered assistance as soon as they could, and the whole party marched off to the lane of notoriety.
1938 E. Bowen Death of Heart ii. i. 184 The taxi turned and crawled along the back of the dyke; Mrs. Heccomb brisked up and began to muster her parcels.
1990 D. McCullin Unreasonable Behaviour 213 He asked if we would like some coffee. So shocked were we that we could hardly muster enough saliva between us to say we would.
b. transitive. figurative. To summon, gather up, call into play, bring to bear (one's skills, courage, strength, enthusiasm, etc.).
ΘΚΠ
the mind > will > decision > resolution or determination > [verb (transitive)] > summon one's resolution
findOE
muster1598
to muster up1628
to call forth1802
to gather up1847
the world > action or operation > undertaking > preparation > prepare [verb (transitive)] > specifically a person > a person or his attributes for an effort
before-girda1382
gird1592
muster1598
to wind up1602
to gather up1617
stringa1771
screw1821
clench1842
1598 W. Shakespeare Love's Labour's Lost v. ii. 85 Muster your Wits, stande in your owne defence. View more context for this quotation
1645 in S. Hibbert Descr. Shetland Islands (1822) 601 Has given yourself..to serving the Devill..that you will not muster power nor will cast off the Devill, sa mutch as..to repeat the Lordis Prayer.
1671 J. Milton Samson Agonistes 402 Mustring all her wiles. View more context for this quotation
1745 E. Young Complaint: Night the Eighth 65 They scarce can swallow their ebullient Spleen, Scarce muster Patience to support the Farce.
1814 W. Scott Waverley I. xv. 213 Cantering his white pony down the avenue with all the speed it could muster . View more context for this quotation
1849 C. Brontë Shirley I. vi. 119 Mr. Moore's dark face mustered colour; his lips smiled.
1863 W. C. Baldwin Afr. Hunting vii. 289 I re-mounted, mustered a canter, by dint of great persuasion.
1876 G. O. Trevelyan Life & Lett. Macaulay II. xv. 478 He mustered strength to dictate a letter.
1921 J. Galsworthy To Let 157 ‘Your father didn't wish you to hear,’ she said, with all the aplomb she could muster.
1987 C. Achebe Anthills of Savannah vi. 77 I simply couldn't muster anything you could call enthusiasm.
†6. transitive. To pass in review, to take stock of. Obsolete. rare.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > judgement or decision > evaluation, estimation, appraisal > appraise, estimate [verb (transitive)] > with regard to resources
mustera1640
to take stock of1864
a1640 J. Fletcher & P. Massinger Custome of Countrey v. v, in F. Beaumont & J. Fletcher Comedies & Trag. (1647) sig. Cc4/2 With what a greedy hawkes eye she beholds me? Marke how she musters all my parts.
7. Australian and New Zealand.
a. transitive. To collect together, round up (cattle, sheep, etc.) for counting, shearing, drafting, branding, etc.; to round up stock from (a place). Also with up. to muster off: to complete a final muster of (a place).
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > farming > animal husbandry > animal keeping practices general > herding, pasturing, or confining > [verb (transitive)] > round up
muster1813
to round up1849
rodeo1854
round1865
to round in1874
1813 in Hist. Rec. Austral. (1916) 1st Ser. VII. 747 You must in Person Muster the whole of the Horned Cattle, Sheep and Horses belonging to the Crown.
1846 C. J. Pharazyn Jrnl. (MS.) 23 June 45 Assisted in mustering Ewes and Lambs into Stock-Yard.
1852 J. R. Clough Diary 4 May in J. Deans Pioneers of Canterbury (1937) 292 Port Philip men just arrived..and two of the survey men mustered the cattle this day.
1867 M. A. Barker Let. in Station Life N.Z. (1870) xvi. 122 It is very difficult to ‘muster’ these ranges.
1878 E. S. Elwell Boy Colonists 208 They all started from the hut to muster off ‘Nob’ mountain.
1930 L. G. D. Acland Early Canterbury Runs vii. 164 The country had never been stocked... [They] had once mustered it..and got about 300 wild sheep off it.
1934 A. Russell Tramp-royal in Wild Austral. xxiii. 210 Here we loosed the herd and went east to muster up another section of the run.
1947 P. Newton Wayleggo (1949) 12 The musterer's job is to muster the sheep off such country into the respective homesteads.
1950 N.Z. Jrnl. Agric. Oct. 349/3 While the hill wethers are being shorn the ewes and lambs are being mustered on the various blocks and are brought in.
1975 N.Z. Jrnl. Agric. Sept. 9/2 Small delays in mustering the herds can then lead to severe delays in the milking routine.
b. intransitive. To make a muster of livestock.
ΚΠ
1861 Puketoi Station Diary (Hocken Libr. MS.) 3 Apr. Worthington..stayed all night going to muster to morrow.
1874 A. Bathgate Colonial Experiences vii. 80 A shepherd, while out mustering, descried the errant steed on a small plateau.
1878 E. S. Elwell Boy Colonists 173 Walker's men never mustered beyond the ‘Saddle’.
1892 E. W. Hornung Under Two Skies 41 All hands were away mustering in a distant paddock.
1944 F. Clune Red Heart 18 I found Bob Buck out mustering.
1987 Stock & Land (Melbourne) 12 Nov. 22/5 Our wethers are shorn in September and drenched and go out on their runs till we muster in May.
†8. intransitive. To pass muster for. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > relationship > equality or equivalence > be or become equal [verb (intransitive)] > be equivalent
amountc1390
to pass for (also as)1463
to come to one purpose1489
weigh1529
to pass muster1573
parallel1626
tantamount1628
to come to the same1643
coextenda1711
muster1820
1820 C. Lamb in London Mag. Oct. 367/1 I longed to new-coat him in Russia, and assign him his place. He might have mustered for a tall Scapula.

Phrasal verbs

With adverbs in specialized senses. to muster in
U.S.
transitive. To enrol into military service; (in early use) †to muster (a watch) at the time of going on duty (obsolete).
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > naming > give a name to [verb (transitive)] > call roll of
muster1670
to muster in1840
1840 R. H. Dana Two Years before Mast xxiii. 230 The carpenter sometimes mustered in the starboard watch.
1911 Oklahoma Session Laws (3rd Legislature) 217 Before any ex-Confederate or ex-Union soldier or sailor shall be entitled to any of the privileges, he shall make an affidavit in writing that he was properly mustered in.
1989 A. Gurganus White People (1991) 185 I..walked off and then soon after got mustered in, then snagged the minnie that costs the leg then the rest of it, me.
 to muster out
U.S.
transitive. To summon to a muster in order to discharge from military service; to discharge from service. Usually in passive.
ΚΠ
1864 G. A. Sala in Daily Tel. 25 Feb. 5/3 Drunken or dishonest subalterns who have been ‘mustered out’—i.e., expelled the army for misconduct.
1883 J. Hay Bread-winners 242 I wouldn't muster out that army of yours till to-morrow.
1903 J. Fox Little Shepherd xxvii. 27 Chad got permission straightway to go back to Ohio and be mustered out with his old regiment.
1918 W. Faulkner Let. 17 Nov. in Thinking of Home (1992) 130 We hear one minute that we are to be mustered out, and next that we spend the winter at flying camp.
1974 R. A. Caro Power Broker vii. xliv. 1027 Mustered out, he used the GI Bill to attend not college but the Actors Laboratory.
 to muster up
1. transitive. To assemble or gather together (people, troops, etc.); to marshal. Also intransitive.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > arrangement or fact of being arranged > state of being gathered together > gather together [verb (transitive)]
somnec825
heapc900
gathera975
samc1000
to set togetherc1275
fang1340
assemblec1374
recueilc1380
drawa1393
to draw togethera1398
semblea1400
congatherc1400
congregatec1400
to take together1490
recollect1513
to gather togetherc1515
to get together1523
congesta1552
confer1552
collect1573
ingatherc1575
ramass1586
upgather1590
to muster upa1593
accrue1594
musterc1595
compone1613
herd1615
contract1620
recoil1632
comporta1641
rally1643
rendezvous1670
purse1809
adduct1824
to round up1873
reeve1876
to pull together1925
society > armed hostility > military organization > ceremonial > perform ceremony [verb (transitive)] > muster
muster1560
to muster upa1593
show1600
a1593 C. Marlowe Massacre at Paris (c1600) sig. B7 Ile muster vp an army secretly.
1595 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 3 iv. ix. 18 In thy countries muster vp thy friends.
1621 R. Burton Anat. Melancholy iii. ii. ii. i. 546 They muster vp wenches as we doe souldiers.
1700 S. L. tr. C. Schweitzer Relation Voy. in tr. C. Frick & C. Schweitzer Relation Two Voy. E.-Indies 305 We were muster'd up, and received the next day two months Pay.
1790 R. Beatson Naval & Mil. Mem. I. 185 Mr Hodge..mustered up about three hundred volunteers.
1822 C. P. Clinch Spy in America's Lost Plays (1941) 104 Muster up now men.
1845 F. Douglass Narr. Life F. Douglass x. 80 They very soon mustered up some old spelling-books.
1891 C. Roberts Adrift in Amer. 190 The few Indians..returned..with all of the tribe that they could muster up.
1990 B. Purdie Politics in Streets (BNC) 134 At times we couldn't muster up the required six members for a quorum at monthly meetings.
2. transitive. In extended use.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > will > decision > resolution or determination > [verb (transitive)] > summon one's resolution
findOE
muster1598
to muster up1628
to call forth1802
to gather up1847
the mind > emotion > courage > encouragement > pluck up courage [verb]
findOE
to take (in early use nim) heartc1275
to have the heartc1300
to hent one's heartc1325
to pull upa1393
to fang upa1400
pluckc1400
to take courage1490
to take heart of grace (and variants)c1520
to lift up one's heart, mind, soul1535
to get (also gather, keep, etc.) heart of grace1581
hearten1587
to pluck up one's courage1660
flesh1695
pluck up courage1726
to pick up1735
to call forth1802
to pluck up1827
to muster up1893
1628 W. Prynne Briefe Suruay Mr. Cozens 10 Which I shall enumerate and muster vp in order.
1662 Bk. Common Prayer Pref. The old Objections mustered up.
1743 R. Blair Grave 7 Whilst busy-meddling Memory..Musters up The past Endearments of their softer Hours.
1777 J. Priestley Matter & Spirit (1782) I. xvi. 188 Dr Oswald..has mustered up all his logic to invalidate it.
1813 W. Scott Let. 6 Nov. (1932) III. 376 A very large river..is at this moment mustering up all its waters with a voice like distant thunder.
1893 F. C. Selous Trav. S.-E. Afr. 111 She had mustered up courage to speak to him.
1925 F. S. Fitzgerald Great Gatsby v. 105 I couldn't muster up a single commonplace out of the thousand in my head.
1986 USA Today 11 July a2/5 Right before my mother died, she mustered up the strength to help me pick out a dress.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2003; most recently modified version published online June 2022).

musterv.2

Brit. /ˈmʌstə/, U.S. /ˈməstər/, Scottish English /ˈmʌstər/
Forms: late Middle English mustre, late Middle English mystre, late Middle English (1800s Scottish) muster, 1800s mustir (English regional).
Origin: Of uncertain origin.
Etymology: Origin uncertain. Compare German regional (Low German) mustern to whistle, Norwegian (Nynorsk) mustra to mutter, mumble, grumble, and also Icelandic muskra to whisper, speak low, bleat, Swedish regional muska mutter; also Shetland Scots musker , mosker to mutter, whisper: all perhaps ultimately of imitative origin (perhaps compare mutter v.1).The 19th-cent. examples may represent an independent formation.
Scottish and English regional in later use.
intransitive. To whisper, speak privately. Later also: to talk volubly.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > hiding, concealing from view > keeping from knowledge > hidden or indirect meaning > talk secretively [verb (intransitive)]
whisperc950
muster1440
Promptorium Parvulorum (Harl. 221) 349 Mustryn [?a1475 Winch. Musteryn] or qwyspryn privyly, mussito.
Promptorium Parvulorum (Harl. 221) 439 Rummuelon, or prively mystron [?a1475 Winch. musteron], mussito.
1825 J. Jamieson Etymol. Dict. Sc. Lang. Suppl. (at cited word) To Muster, to talk with exceeding volubility, Clydes.
1847 J. O. Halliwell Dict. Archaic & Provinc. Words II Mustir, to talk together privately.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2003; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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