Crossword Dictionary

What's The Definition Of Mummy?

\Mum"my\, n.; pl. {Mummies}. [F. momie; cf. Sp. & Pg. momia, It. mummia; all fr. Per. m?miy[=a], fr. m?m wax.] 1. A dead body embalmed and dried after the manner of the ancient Egyptians; also, a body preserved, by any means, in a dry state, from the process of putrefaction. --Bacon. 2. Dried flesh of a mummy. [Obs.] --Sir. J. Hill. 3. A gummy liquor that exudes from embalmed flesh when heated; -- formerly supposed to have magical and medicinal properties. [Obs.] --Shak. --Sir T. Herbert. 4. A brown color obtained from bitumen. See {Mummy brown} (below). 5. (Gardening) A sort of wax used in grafting, etc. 6. One whose affections and energies are withered. {Mummy brown}, a brown color, nearly intermediate in tint between burnt umber and raw umber. A pigment of this color is prepared from bitumen, etc., obtained from Egyptian tombs. {Mummy wheat} (Bot.), wheat found in the ancient mummy cases of Egypt. No botanist now believes that genuine mummy wheat has been made to germinate in modern times. {To beat to a mummy}, to beat to a senseless mass; to beat soundly.
\Mum"my\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Mummied}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Mummying}.] To embalm; to mummify.