muster
pronunciation
How to pronounce muster in British English:
UK [ˈmʌstə(r)]
How to pronounce muster in American English:
US [ˈmʌstɚ]
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- Noun:
- a gathering of military personnel for duty
- compulsory military service
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- Verb:
- gather or bring together
- call to duty, military service, jury duty, etc.
Word Origin
- muster
- muster: see monster
- muster (v.)
- c. 1300, "to display, reveal, appear," from Old French mostrer "appear, show, reveal," also in a military sense (10c., Modern French montrer), from Latin monstrare "to show," from monstrum "omen, sign" (see monster). Meaning "to collect, assemble" is early 15c.; figurative use (of qualities, etc.) is from 1580s. To muster out "gather to be discharged from military service" is 1834, American English. To muster up in the figurative and transferred sense of "gather, summon, marshal" is from 1620s. Related: Mustered; mustering.
- muster (n.)
- late 14c., "action of showing, manifestation," from Old French mostre "illustration, proof; examination, inspection" (13c., Modern French montre), literally "that which is shown," from mostrer (see muster (v.)). Meaning "act of gathering troops" is from c. 1400. To pass musters (1570s) originally meant "to undergo military review without censure."
Example
- 1. We need to muster the same pragmatism to save humanity .
- 2. He predicted that the government would fail to muster a majority .
- 3. Yet these models are still the best predictions of the future that science can muster .
- 4. Political leadership on both sides will need to muster courage to reorient the relationship .
- 5. The wto found that some a380 launch aid was indeed an illegal export subsidy , but airbus contends this can be dealt with merely by changing the wording of the contracts drawn up by the german , british and spanish governments to match the french version , which passed muster with the wto .