murphy

[ mur-fee ]
See synonyms for murphy on Thesaurus.com
noun,plural mur·phies.
  1. an Irish or white potato.

  2. any of various confidence games in which a victim is left with a sealed envelope supposedly containing money, but which contains only newspaper or scrap paper cut to the same size as paper money.

verb (used with object),mur·phied, mur·phy·ing.
  1. to victimize or dupe in such a manner.

Origin of murphy

1
First recorded in 1805–15; special uses of Murphy, a typical Irish surname

Words Nearby murphy

Other definitions for Murphy (2 of 2)

Murphy
[ mur-fee ]

noun
  1. Frank, 1890–1949, U.S. statesman and jurist: associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court 1940–49.

  2. Isaac, 1861–96, U.S. thoroughbred racehorse jockey.

  1. William Par·ry [par-ee], /ˈpær i/, 1892–1987, U.S. physician: Nobel Prize in medicine 1934.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use murphy in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for murphy (1 of 2)

murphy

/ (ˈmɜːfɪ) /


nounplural -phies
  1. a dialect or informal word for potato

Origin of murphy

1
C19: from the common Irish surname Murphy

British Dictionary definitions for Murphy (2 of 2)

Murphy

/ (ˈmɜːfɪ) /


noun
  1. Alex. born 1939, English rugby league player and coach; scored 16 tries in 27 test matches for Great Britain (1958–71)

  2. Eddie, full name Edward Regan Murphy . born 1951, US film actor and comedian. His films include 48 Hours (1982), Beverly Hills Cop (1984), Coming to America (1988), Dr Dolittle (1998), and, as a voice artist, the Shrek series of animated films (2001–10)

  1. William Parry. 1892–1987, US physician: with G. R. Minot, he discovered the liver treatment for anaemia and they shared, with G. H. Whipple, the Nobel prize for physiology or medicine in 1934

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012