muffig

German

Etymology

The senses “smelly” and “grumpy” go back to different origins. The former pertains to Muff (“bad smell”) from (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Middle Low German muffen; the latter to Muffel (“grumpy person”), which is an Upper German dialect word of unknown origin. In contemporary German both senses often overlap (see below). It is therefore impossible to treat them as separate words anymore. Compare the same mixture of roots in muffelig.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmʊfɪç/ (standard)
• IPA^(key): /ˈmʊfɪk/ (common form in southern Germany, Austria, and Switzerland)
• Hyphenation: muf‧fig

Adjective

muffig (comparative muffiger, superlative am muffigsten)

1. (generally) smelly, stinking, particularly: having a moldy smell
2. (of a room, furniture) uninviting, fusty, in need of renovation
3. (of a person) grumpy, unfriendly
4. (figurative) old-fashioned, reactionary

Related terms

• Muff
• Muffel
• muffelig