muscle

1 of 2

noun

mus·​cle ˈmə-səl How to pronounce muscle (audio)
often attributive
1
a
: a body tissue consisting of long cells that contract when stimulated and produce motion
b
: an organ that is essentially a mass of muscle tissue attached at either end to a fixed point and that by contracting moves or checks the movement of a body part
2
a
: muscular strength : brawn
b
: effective strength : power
political muscle

muscle

2 of 2

verb

muscled; muscling ˈmə-s(ə-)liŋ How to pronounce muscle (audio)

transitive verb

: to move or force by or as if by muscular effort
muscled him out of office

intransitive verb

: to make one's way by brute strength or by force

Examples of muscle in a Sentence

Noun the muscles of the arm an athlete with bulging muscles He pulled a muscle playing tennis. She has a strained muscle in her back. She started lifting weights to build muscle. She doesn't have the muscle to lift something so heavy. Verb They muscled the heavy boxes onto the truck. They muscled the furniture up the stairs. He muscled through the crowd. They muscled into line behind us.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Noun
Building the muscle and reclaiming your power to make things happen only requires a willingness to start. Amanda Miller Littlejohn, Forbes.com, 29 Mar. 2025 Another way to relax your muscles and mind is to take a warm bath without Epsom salts. Stephanie Brown, Verywell Health, 28 Mar. 2025
Verb
With the release of Season 3’s first three episode, Prime Video’s Reacher easily muscled its way back onto Nielsen’s U.S. ranking of streaming originals. Matt Webb Mitovich, TVLine, 20 Mar. 2025 Johnson succeeds in jamming Schumer Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) set the tone for this week’s shutdown showdown, unveiling the stopgap Saturday, selling it to his conference Monday and muscling it through his razor-thin majority Tuesday. Mychael Schnell, The Hill, 14 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for muscle

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, from Latin musculus, from diminutive of mus mouse — more at mouse entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

circa 1819, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Time Traveler
The first known use of muscle was in the 14th century

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Muscle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/muscle. Accessed 4 Apr. 2025.

Kids Definition

muscle

1 of 2 noun
mus·​cle ˈməs-əl How to pronounce muscle (audio)
1
a
: a body tissue consisting of long cells that can contract and produce motion
b
: an organ that is a mass of muscle tissue attached at either end to a fixed point (as to bones) and that by contracting moves or stops the movement of a body part
2
a
: muscular strength : brawn
b
: power entry 1 sense 2
lacks the muscle to make good on campaign promises

muscle

2 of 2 verb
muscled; muscling ˈməs-(ə-)liŋ How to pronounce muscle (audio)
1
: to force from a position
was muscled out of office by political opponents
2
: to force one's way
muscled through the crowd
Etymology

Noun

from Latin musculus "muscle, little mouse," from mus "mouse"

Word Origin
People today are perhaps unlikely to think of their muscles as resembling mice. The ancient Romans, however, saw a likeness, especially in the major muscles of the arms and legs. For that reason the Latin word musculus, which originally meant "little mouse," came to be used to mean "muscle."

Medical Definition

muscle

noun
mus·​cle ˈməs-əl How to pronounce muscle (audio)
often attributive
1
: a body tissue consisting of long cells that contract when stimulated and produce motion see cardiac muscle, smooth muscle, striated muscle
2
: an organ that is essentially a mass of muscle tissue attached at either end to a fixed point and that by contracting moves or checks the movement of a body part see agonist sense 1, antagonist sense a, synergist sense 2

More from Merriam-Webster on muscle

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!