Definitions for muscle
ˈmʌs əlmus·cle

Princeton's WordNet(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. muscle, musculus(noun)

   one of the contractile organs of the body

2. muscle, muscular tissue(noun)

   animal tissue consisting predominantly of contractile cells

3. muscleman, muscle(noun)

   a bully employed as a thug or bodyguard

   "the drug lord had his muscleman to protect him"

4. muscle(noun)

   authority or power or force (especially when used in a coercive way)

   "the senators used their muscle to get the party leader to resign"

5. brawn, brawniness, muscle, muscularity, sinew, heftiness(verb)

   possessing muscular strength

6. muscle(verb)

   make one's way by force

   "He muscled his way into the office"

GCIDE(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Muscle(n.)

   An essential part of something; as, budget cuts have gone beyond the fat and are cutting into the muscle of the government.

   Etymology: [F., fr. L. musculus a muscle, a little mouse, dim. of mus a mouse. See Mouse, and cf. sense 3 (below).]

2. muscle(v. t.)

   To compel by threat of force; as, they muscled the shopkeeper into paying protection money.

3. muscle(v. t.)

   To moved by human force; as, to muscle the piano onto the truck.

Wiktionary(1.00 / 1 vote)Rate this definition:

1. muscle(Noun)

   A contractile form of tissue which animals use to effect movement.

   Muscle consists largely of actin and myosin filaments.

   Etymology: From muscle, from musculus, because of the mouselike appearance of some muscles, from μῦς. Cognate with mus. More at mouse.

2. muscle(Noun)

   An organ composed of muscle tissue.

   The muscles in his legs strained under the load.

   Etymology: From muscle, from musculus, because of the mouselike appearance of some muscles, from μῦς. Cognate with mus. More at mouse.

3. muscle(Noun)

   Strength.

   It took a lot of muscle to move the boulders.

   Etymology: From muscle, from musculus, because of the mouselike appearance of some muscles, from μῦς. Cognate with mus. More at mouse.

4. muscle(Noun)

   Hired strongmen or bodyguards.

   Etymology: From muscle, from musculus, because of the mouselike appearance of some muscles, from μῦς. Cognate with mus. More at mouse.

5. muscle(Verb)

   To use force to make progress, especially physical force.

   He muscled his way through the crowd.

   Etymology: From muscle, from musculus, because of the mouselike appearance of some muscles, from μῦς. Cognate with mus. More at mouse.

Webster Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Muscle(noun)

   an organ which, by its contraction, produces motion

   Etymology: [F., fr. L. musculus a muscle, a little mouse, dim. of mus a mouse. See Mouse, and cf. sense 3 (below).]

2. Muscle(noun)

   the contractile tissue of which muscles are largely made up

   Etymology: [F., fr. L. musculus a muscle, a little mouse, dim. of mus a mouse. See Mouse, and cf. sense 3 (below).]

3. Muscle(noun)

   muscular strength or development; as, to show one's muscle by lifting a heavy weight

   Etymology: [F., fr. L. musculus a muscle, a little mouse, dim. of mus a mouse. See Mouse, and cf. sense 3 (below).]

4. Muscle(noun)

   see Mussel

   Etymology: [F., fr. L. musculus a muscle, a little mouse, dim. of mus a mouse. See Mouse, and cf. sense 3 (below).]

Freebase(4.00 / 1 vote)Rate this definition:

1. Muscle

   Muscle is a soft tissue found in most animals. Muscle cells contain protein filaments that slide past one another, producing a contraction that changes both the length and the shape of the cell. Muscles function to produce force and motion. They are primarily responsible for maintenance of and changes in posture, locomotion of the organism itself, as well as movement of internal organs, such as the contraction of the heart and movement of food through the digestive system via peristalsis. Muscle tissues are derived from the mesodermal layer of embryonic germ cells in a process known as myogenesis. There are three types of muscle; classified as skeletal, cardiac, or smooth muscles. These types of muscles are split down into two more different classifications: voluntary and involuntary. Cardiac and smooth muscle contraction muscles occur without conscious thought and are thought to be essential for survival. Muscles are predominantly powered by the oxidation of fats and carbohydrates, but anaerobic chemical reactions are also used, particularly by fast twitch fibers. These chemical reactions produce adenosine triphosphate molecules which are used to power the movement of the myosin heads.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Muscle

   mus′l, n. an animal tissue consisting of bundles of fibres through whose contractility bodily movement is effected, the fibres of the voluntary muscles being striped, those of the involuntary (of intestinal canal, blood-vessels, and of skin) unstriped.—adj. Mus′cled, supplied with muscles.—ns. Mus′cle-read′ing, the interpretation of slight involuntary muscular movements; Mus′cling, the delineation of muscles, as in a picture; Musculā′tion, the arrangement of muscles of a body; Musculos′ity.—adj. Mus′culous, pertaining to muscle: full of muscles, strong. [Fr.,—L. musculus, dim. of mus, a mouse, a muscle.]

Editors Contribution(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. muscle

   A type of organ and matter within the body of an animal or human being.

   Muscles are a vital part of the human body.

   Submitted by MaryC on January 29, 2020  

Entomology(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Muscle

   the fleshy fibres of the insect body that serve to move the appendages and other body organs.

British National Corpus

1. Written Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'muscle' in Written Corpus Frequency: #4156

2. Nouns Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'muscle' in Nouns Frequency: #1156

How to pronounce muscle?

1. Alex

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

How to say muscle in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of muscle in Chaldean Numerology is: 6

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of muscle in Pythagorean Numerology is: 1

Examples of muscle in a Sentence

1. Shana Verstegen:

   You need every single muscle in your body ... if you get tired your technique goes out the door, one little misstep and its over.

2. Vouyiouklis Kellis:

   Having irregular periods can be a first sign, or even bowel movement changes or constipation. Issues with performance and muscle recovery could become problematic, untreated, if it gets severe and the body's unable to produce any thyroid hormone, everything starts to slow down. You can have memory issues, slow speech, slow movement -- you can even develop fluid around the heart and fluid in the lungs. The heart rate can also slow down.

3. Thomas Carlyle:

   A man with a half volition goes backwards and forwards, and makes no way on the smoothest road a man with a whole volition advances on the roughest, and will reach his purpose, if there be even a little worthiness in it. The man without a purpose is like a ship without a rudder - a waif, a nothing, a no man. Have a purpose in life and having it, throw such strength of mind and muscle into your work as God has given you.

4. Takashi Kasukawa:

   The brain's information is transmitted to the muscle through the nerve cells during movements. The HAL will catch the bioelectric potential signals generated at that time and then act.

5. Damion Martins:

   Even at the young age, the heart is a muscle...there are 16-year-olds that can have an enlarged heart from muscle, so it looks like an athlete EKG. It has higher voltage. Pediatricians say this is abnormal, but a sports medicine specialist would say that's the typical pattern of a trained athlete, untrained physicians overcall abnormality and that leads to further testing.

Images & Illustrations of muscle

Popularity rank by frequency of use