musty

Etymology 1

The adjective is derived from Late Middle English musty; further origin uncertain, possibly from one of the following: * From Anglo-Norman muste, moste, variants of moiste, muiste (“moist”), from Old French moiste (“clammy, damp, moist, wet”) (modern French moite (“muggy; sticky, sweaty”)), from a blend of Vulgar Latin *mucidus (from Latin mūcidus (“mouldy, musty”), from Old Latin mūceō (“to be mouldy or musty”) + -idus (suffix meaning ‘tending to’, forming adjectives)) + Latin mustum (“unfermented or partially fermented grape juice, must; new wine”) (from mustus (“fresh; young; unfermented”), from Proto-Indo-European *mus-, *mews- (“damp; moss”)). * From another language derived from the above Latin words (compare the cognates below). * A variant of Middle English mosty, moisti (“damp, humid, wet, moisty; of fruit: moist and juicy”) [and other forms] (perhaps influenced by must (“fruit (usually grape) juice which has been or will be fermented”)), from moist, moiste (“damp, humid; moist, wet; well-irrigated, well-watered; liquid; of ale: new; (figuratively) not withered, fresh; carnal, lascivious; raw, undisciplined”) (from Old French moiste: see above) + -i (suffix forming adjectives). Compare Middle French moisi (“mouldy”), an adjective use of the past participle of moisir (“(to cause) to go mouldy, to moulder”) (modern French moisir), from Latin mūcēre, the present active infinitive of Old Latin mūceō (“to be mouldy or musty”): see above. The English word is analysable as must (“mould; mustiness”) + -y (suffix meaning ‘having the quality of’ forming adjectives); however, must is thought to be a back-formation from musty. The noun and verb are derived from the adjective. cognates * Catalan mústic, musti (“wilted, withered; gloomy, sad”) * Galician murcho, mucho (“wilted, withered”) * Old Occitan moste (Occitan moste, mosti, musti (“damp, wet”) (Gascon)) * Portuguese murcho (“wilted, withered; gloomy, sad”) * Spanish mustio (“wilted, withered; gloomy, sad”)

adj

1. Affected by dampness or mould; damp, mildewed, mouldy.
   Undaunted vvas my heart, nor could appal / The muſtieſt volume of the ſtall; / VVhere'er I turn'd, the giant ſpiders fled, / And trembling moths retreated as I read; […] a. 1773 (date written), James Græme, “The Student: A Fragment”, in Poems on Several Occasions, Edinburgh: […] A[lexander] Donaldson; for W. Somerville,[…], published 1773, →OCLC, page 43
   Reize already has a strong and spirited jump, bounding higher than most every other fighter. That's what happens when you're not weighed down with all that musty, old armor! 13 November 2019, “Reize – Showdown Character Highlight”, in Yacht Club Games, archived from the original on 2020-12-05
2. Having an odour or taste of mould; also (generally), having a stale or unfresh odour or taste.
   musty food musty furniture a musty odour
   Well, I haue almost mard their market, for Gentlemen especially, those that loue to smell sweete, for they are the worst Milliners in a kingdome, and their sutes beare the mustiest perfume of anything breathing, vnlesse it were an Usurers Night-cappe againe: […] 1604, “The Meeting of Gallants at an Ordinarie: Or, The Walkes in Powles”, in J[ames] O[rchard] H[alliwell], editor, Early English Poetry, Ballads, and Popular Literature of the Middle Ages: Edited from Original Manuscripts and Scarce Publications, volume V, London: […] [F]or the Percy Society by T. Richards, published 1841, →OCLC, page 11
3. Characteristic of or relating to mould or mouldiness.
4. (figurative)
   1. Of attitudes, ideas, writing, or other abstract things: no longer fresh or interesting; outdated, stale.
   2. Of a person: boring and unadventurous; also, old-fashioned, stuck in the past.
   3. (archaic except Northern England (northwest)) Bad-tempered, grumpy, irritable.

noun

1. (obsolete) A type of snuff with a musty flavour (adjective sense 2).

verb

1. (intransitive, obsolete) To turn musty (adjective sense 1 or 2); to must.

Etymology 2

From musth (“time during which male elephants exhibit increased levels of sexual activity and aggressiveness”) + -y (suffix meaning ‘having the quality of’ forming adjectives).

adj

1. (rare) Of a male animal such as a camel or an elephant: in musth.