mussel
Americannoun
noun
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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,
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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
Usage
Where does mussel come from? Take a quick gander at your muscles. Do you think they look anything like ... mice? And do you think mice resemble mussels, as in the edible mollusk? This may sound odd to you, but to the ancient Romans, it would have made perfect sense.This is because both the words muscle and mussel come from musculus, which literally means "little mouse" (mus means and is related to "mouse").As far as we can tell, the ancient Romans thought that the movement of a muscle, especially when flexing, looked like a mouse was running under your skin. If you don’t know how muscles work, it sounds as reasonable a guess as any.Now to the mollusk: the ancient Romans apparently also thought that mussels, the shellfish, looked like little mice. The word mussels also comes from that same Latin noun as muscle: musculus.The roots of these other words may get a rise—of laughter or surprise—out of you. Run on over to our roundup of them at "Weird Word Origins That Will Make Your Family Laugh."
Etymology
Origin of mussel
before 1000; Middle English, Old English muscle < Vulgar Latin *mūscula, variant of Latin mūsculus little mouse, sea mussel. See muscle
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Supriyanto, 32, is a green mussel trader and once bought from local fishermen who harvested the shellfish offshore.
From Barron's • Feb. 18, 2026
On Wednesday, they served a mussel dish with garlic confit and serrano chili developed by his breakfast sous chef.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 13, 2025
A particularly worrisome mussel species has entered North America for the first time through the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta — sparking what many are calling an immediate threat to California’s most significant watersheds.
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 2, 2024
The seabed there contains carbon-storing muds, maerl beds and horse mussel reefs which form part of a rich and complex underwater ecosystem.
From BBC • Sep. 23, 2024
Yishan grabbed the fallen mussel and tossed away the arrow.
From "When the Sea Turned to Silver" by Grace Lin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
