Etymology

mump

M3U1M3P3

Today it means: To mumble, speak unclearly. Full definition →

Proto-Germanic *mump- ← Proto-Indo-European *mm̥bʰ-neh₂-
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The story

  1. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*mm̥bʰ-neh₂-
  2. Proto-Germanic · derived from*mump-“to stain”
  3. English todaymump

Perhaps borrowed through obsolete Dutch mompen (“to cheat, swindle, deceive”), according to Kroonen, a derivative of Proto-Germanic *mump- (“to stain”), perhaps from Proto-Indo-European *mm̥bʰ-neh₂- Also akin to German mimpfeln (“to mumble”), Icelandic mumpa (“to take into the mouth”). See also English mum. While Kroonen claims Ancient Greek μέμφομαι (mémphomai, “I blame, accuse”) and the Germanic forms are reconcilable and related, Beekes rejects this, stating that Germanic -p- cannot here correspond to Greek -φ- and that this etymological connection is not widely considered reliable.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.