hugger-mugger

[ huhg-er-muhg-er ]

noun

1. disorder or confusion; muddle.
2. secrecy; reticence:

   Why is there such hugger-mugger about the scheme?

adjective

1. secret or clandestine.
2. disorderly or confused.

verb (used with object)

1. to keep secret or concealed; hush up.

verb (used without object)

1. to act secretly.

hugger-mugger

/ ˈhʌɡəˌmʌɡə /

noun

1. confusion
2. rare.
   secrecy

adjective

1. with secrecy
2. in confusion

verb

1. tr to keep secret
2. intr to act secretly

Word History and Origins

Origin of hugger-mugger¹

First recorded in 1520–30; earlier hucker-mucker, rhyming compound based on mucker, from Middle English mokeren “to hoard”

Word History and Origins

Origin of hugger-mugger¹

C16: of uncertain origin

Example Sentences

A ripe era for wartime espionage makes for a hugger-mugger entertainment in Lou Ye’s black-and-white historical drama “Saturday Fiction.”

From Los Angeles Times

Cornwall, a cottage in a dark hollow surrounded by woods in the hugger-mugger days following the birth of my first son, our horizon hidden behind fat dark rain clouds, November, mud, puddles, bitter winds.

From The Guardian

His smile when he poses with voters is a rictus, he ducks fund-raising calls, and he lacks patience for the backroom hugger-mugger required to pass legislation.

From The New Yorker

Which is why in many instances the interests that Pinker dismisses as irrational hugger-mugger, everything from astrology to spiritualism, have tended to strengthen during periods of real scientific ferment.

From New York Times

He carried it out hugger-mugger—books, dishes, the downstairs rocker, all in a great mix—and carted it right down the middle of Parker Head.

From Literature