noun / verb
muss
MUS/mʌs/
An untidy state, or to make something untidy.
The woman musses the man's hair, scattering its neatly combed locks.
Etymology
Muss probably arose as a variant of mess meaning 'to disorder.' Mess itself likely acquired its disorder sense from mixed food, understood as a jumble or mixed mass.
More examples
- His hair is in a muss when he wakes up.
- Please don't muss the blankets I just folded.
- She smooths her mussed hair before the meeting.
Forms
muss · musses · mussed · mussing