mucousy

English

Etymology

mucous +‎ -y = muc(us) +‎ -ous +‎ -y = muco- +‎ -ous +‎ -y (see note).

Adjective

mucousy (comparative more mucousy, superlative most mucousy)

1. (chiefly informal) Synonym of mucous.
   • 2005, Jo Ann White, Shih tzu, page 35:

     Do all the puppies seem healthy, with no mucousy discharge from the nose, no loose stools, and no foul smell from their ears? Are their coats clean and full? Do they have plenty of energy when awake?

2. (chiefly informal) Suggesting mucus; mucus-like; slimy.
   • 2008 March 21, Roberta Smith, Andro Wekua, Dan Walsh, Ken Johnson, Mark Handforth, Karen Rosenberg, George Condo, “Art in Review”, in New York Times‎^[1]:

     He makes obstreperous, richly glazed ceramic vessels that suggest charred remains; totemic sculptures webbed with mucousy, macramélike drips of resin; large, dark collages dotted with constellations of tiny images of artifacts; and drawings, photographs and short videos.

Usage notes

Although the noun mucus traditionally takes the adjective mucous as its counterpart (with suffix -ous), the fact that this pair is homophonous occasionally influences speakers to add another adjectival suffix (-y) for easy clarity in speech. Such redundancy for easy clarity is not rare (nor always incorrect) in natural language. The noun + -y counterpart also exists (mucusy); the same is true for callousy and callusy.

Synonyms

• mucusy