mussel
[ muhs-uh l ]
/ ˈmʌs əl /
noun
any bivalve mollusk, especially an edible marine bivalve of the family Mytilidae and a freshwater clam of the family Unionidae.
Origin of mussel
before 1000; Middle English, Old English
muscle < Vulgar Latin
*mūscula, variant of Latin
mūsculus little mouse, sea mussel. See
muscle
Words nearby mussel
muso,
musquash,
musquash root,
muss,
mussaka,
mussel,
mussel crab,
musselcracker,
musset,
musset's sign,
mussitate
Example sentences from the Web for mussel
British Dictionary definitions for mussel
mussel
/ (ˈmʌsəl) /
noun
any of various marine bivalves of the genus Mytilus and related genera, esp M. edulis (edible mussel), having a dark slightly elongated shell and living attached to rocks, etc,
any of various freshwater bivalves of the genera Anodonta, Unio, etc, attached to rocks, sand, etc having a flattened oval shell (a source of mother-of-pearl). The zebra mussel, Dreissena polymorpha, can be a serious nuisance in water mains
Word Origin for mussel
Old English
muscle, from Vulgar Latin
muscula (unattested), from Latin
musculus, diminutive of
mūs mouse