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Mutt can now be used with either affection or disdain to refer to a dog that is not purebred, but in the word's early history, in the U.S. around the turn of the 20th century, it could also be used to describe a person—and not kindly: mutt was another word for "fool." The word's history lies in another insult. It comes from muttonhead, another Americanism that also means essentially "fool." Muttonhead had been around since the early 19th century but it was not unlike an older insult with the same meaning: people had been calling one another "sheep's heads" since the mid-16th century.
Examples of mutt in a Sentence
David Szondy, New Atlas, 5 Feb. 2025
The article begins: Heather Massey brought Ladybird to the veterinarian when the 9-year-old mutt began having seizures.
—The Learning Network, New York Times, 9 Jan. 2025
In Vermont, a fast-acting witness spotted a struggling 7-year-old mutt in trouble and waded into an icy river up to his waist to reunite the dog with its grateful owner.
—Alexis Simendinger, The Hill, 20 Jan. 2025
Two lively mutts guard the noodle factory on the other side of the fence.
—Anne F. Thurston, Foreign Affairs, 23 Feb. 2016
See All Example Sentences for mutt
Cite this Entry
“Mutt.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mutt. Accessed 5 Mar. 2025.
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