musculus

Latin

Etymology

From mūs (“mouse”) +‎ -culus (diminutive suffix), or literally “little mouse”. The “muscle” sense is a semantic loan from Ancient Greek μῦς (mûs, “mouse; muscle”).

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): /ˈmuːs.ku.lus/, [ˈmuːs̠kʊɫ̪ʊs̠]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ˈmus.ku.lus/, [ˈmuskulus]

Noun

mūsculus m (genitive mūsculī); second declension

1. small mouse
2. muscle
3. saltwater mussel
4. (military) mantelet, shielding

Declension

Second-declension noun.

Case	Singular	Plural
Nominative	mūsculus	mūsculī
Genitive	mūsculī	mūsculōrum
Dative	mūsculō	mūsculīs
Accusative	mūsculum	mūsculōs
Ablative	mūsculō	mūsculīs
Vocative	mūscule	mūsculī

Derived terms

• mūsculāris
• mūsculōsus

Descendants

• Albanian: muskul, mushk
• Aromanian: mushclju
• Asturian: muslu
• Catalan: muscle, múscul
• Dutch: mossel, mussel
• English: muscle, mussel
• French: muscle, moule
• Friulian: muscul
• Galician: músculo
• German: Muskel; Muschel

• Italian: muscolo
• Occitan: muscle
• Portuguese: músculo, mexilhão (< *muscelliō < *muscellus)
• Romanian: mușchi
• Romansch: muscul, muscal, muscla
• Russian: мускул (muskul)
• Sardinian: musculu
• Spanish: músculo, muslo
• Swedish: muskel

References

• “musculus”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “musculus”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• musculus in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)
• musculus in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
• “musculus”, in Harry Thurston Peck, editor (1898), Harper's Dictionary of Classical Antiquities, New York: Harper & Brothers
• “musculus”, in William Smith et al., editor (1890), A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, London: William Wayte. G. E. Marindin