Definitions

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A contest between drinkers to decide which of them can drink the most.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • verb obsolete To be restless.
  • noun A person who has no magical abilities.
  • noun skilled or specialized groups A person who lacks a skill or is not a member of the group.
  • verb transitive (in geocaching) To remove, deface or destroy a geocache.
  • noun in singular or plural, dated A marijuana cigarette; a joint.
  • noun slang hot chocolate

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

unknown

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (1997) by J. K. Rowling, from the Harry Potter franchise.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

Origin unknown. First known to come into usage in New Orleans in the mid-1920s.

Support

Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word muggle.

Examples

  • Who cares if she took the word muggle from a children’s book in the 80s.

    Who (or what) is your Entertainer of the Decade? | EW.com 2009

  • Cantor: Tempers Flare as Debt Talks Take a Dramatic Turn True meaning of Harry Potter term 'muggle' is revealed to be marijuana Harry Potter: Hail and Farewell to a Hallowed Franchise

    Yahoo! News: Business - Opinion 2011

  • True meaning of Harry Potter term 'muggle' is revealed to be marijuana The Hacking Saga Continues: Murdoch Goes to Parliament, a New Arrest is Made

    TIME.com: Top Stories 2011

  • Hitler's Joy of Sex: Nazi Leader Reportedly Gave Blow-Up Dolls To Soldiers True meaning of Harry Potter term 'muggle' is revealed to be marijuana The Hacking Saga Continues: Murdoch Goes to Parliament, a New Arrest is Made

    TIME.com: Top Stories 2011

  • In a world where magic dominates and where broken limbs can be mended within seconds, physical prowess is a lot less valued than in our "muggle" world.

    Harry Potter, the jock Kylopod 2009

  • In a world where magic dominates and where broken limbs can be mended within seconds, physical prowess is a lot less valued than in our "muggle" world.

    Archive 2009-10-01 Kylopod 2009

  • And as it is obviously an imagined world, it can tell me all the more about the world than "muggle" fiction.

    Why Do You Read/Watch Science Fiction? 2006

  • The clue that set me off was the description of the cache as something a "muggle" would overlook but to a geocacher it would stand out ... made me think of a "portkey".

    Archive 2007-03-01 Darren Kuropatwa 2007

  • The clue that set me off was the description of the cache as something a "muggle" would overlook but to a geocacher it would stand out ... made me think of a "portkey".

    Missed One Found Another Darren Kuropatwa 2007

  • Sounds like "muggle", JKR's word for non magical folk from the Harry Potter series...

    Muggins explained Jessica 2006

Comments

Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.

  • 'Harry could tell that they were Muggles because they remained quite stationary within their pictures, faded smiles and glazed eyes frozen on the paper.' Harry Potter and the deathly hallows. J.K. Rowling.

    March 1, 2008

  • Also a slang term for marijuana (either singular or plural), as I discovered today while reading about Louis Armstrong.

    August 11, 2008

  • Also used today on NPR's Says You "which is the real definition" segment of the show. Real definition: a man with a tail.

    August 31, 2008

  • Someone not a member of the "magic" -witch & wizard - community. From the Harry Potter series of books written by J K Rowling.

    '

    June 14, 2009

  • A non wizard

    March 20, 2011

  • I still have the hope I am not a muggle :)

    July 17, 2011

  • You know you'll find archaic words when an old book has 'archaic words' in the title.

    The west Somerset word-book: A glossary of dialectal and archaic ... - Volume 17, Issue 3 - Page 20

    books.google.ca/books?id=WVYJAAAAQAAJ

    Frederick Thomas Elworthy - 1886

    ALL TO A MUGGLE Tau l tue u muug-1]. In a muddle, confusion. Uur zumd awl tue u muug-l, poo ur soal, aa'dr ee duyd, she seemed all to a muggle, poor soul, after he died. Dhu aewz wuz awl tue u muug-l, the house was all to a muggle.

    February 19, 2013