mutton

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mutton^¹

/ˈmʌt(ə)n/ US, UK
[ˈmʌʔn̩] US, UK

Rhymes with -ʌtən

Where it comes from

From Middle English motoun, moton, from Old French mouton (“sheep”), from Vulgar Latin moltō, from Gaulish *multon-, from Proto-Celtic *moltos (“ram, wether”). Doublet of mouton.

noun muttons

countable, uncountable The meat of sheep used as food; especially, that of adults. Mutton, eaten with caraway seed, is eaten as an aphrodisiac among Arabs.
Similar: sheepflesh, sheepmeat
countable, uncountable The meat of a goat, urial, or other caprine. This prejudice against goat mutton is founded upon ignorance rather than experience. The most ill-smelling “billy” of the worst possible type is made the standard of goat flesh for the whole goat family.
archaic, countable, uncountable A sheep.
countable, slang, uncountable Em, a unit of measurement equal to the height of the type in use.
countable, obsolete, slang, uncountable A prostitute.
Similar: laced mutton
countable, historical, uncountable An old Anglo-French gold coin impressed with the image of a lamb.

adjective

Cockney, not comparable, slang deaf. He's been a bit mutton in one ear for a long time; not due to my mother, but as a result of all the years spent working in a noisy car factory.
Similar: Mutton Jeff

Mutton^²

proper noun

A surname.

Thesaurus

Closest in meaning: em, mouton, mut, chop, suet, lamb, ovine, sheep, wether, goat, chops, denomination, cutlets, sheepmeat, hogget, lamb meat

Translations

Every language

noun the flesh of sheep used as food

Español	cordero
한국어	양고기 yanggogi
日本語	羊肉 yōniku
中文	羊肉 yángròu
Kiswahili	nyama ya kondoo
Português	carneiro
Français	mouton
Deutsch	Schaffleisch, Hammel, Hammelfleisch, Schöpsenfleisch, Schöpserne
Italiano	carne ovina
Ελληνικά	πρόβειο κρέας próveio kréas
Română	oaie
Русский	бара́нина baránina
العربية	لَحْم اَلضَّأْن laḥm aḍ-ḍaʔn
עברית	טָלֶה

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MLA

"mutton." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/mutton. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

mutton. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/mutton

Chicago

"mutton." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/mutton.

BibTeX

@misc{mutton_2026,
  title = {mutton},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/mutton},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}