mummy

noun mum·my \ ˈmə-mē \

Updated on: 11 Apr 2018

Definition of mummy

plural mummies

1 a : a body embalmed or treated for burial with preservatives in the manner of the ancient Egyptians

b : a body unusually well preserved

2 : one resembling a mummy

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Recent Examples of mummy from the Web

The research began in 2012 when Garry P. Nolan of Stanford University caught wind of the documentary and offered to examine the mummy’s DNA.

— julissa treviño, Smithsonian, "Chilean Government Investigates Whether the Atacama Mummy Was Illegally Exhumed," 30 Mar. 2018
Publication of the study in the journal Genome Research enraged some researchers in Chile, where the looting and sale of artifacts and even mummies have long been a concern.

— carl zimmer, New York Times, "Chile and Its Scientists Protest Research on Tiny Mummy," 28 Mar. 2018
Amazing mummy discovery: 2,500-year-old Egyptian coffin was thought to be empty.

— Fox News, "FOX NEWS FIRST: Dems fear losing voters over census question; California sanctuary city backlash escalates," 28 Mar. 2018
Ata, though desiccated by the super-dry Atacama, is no ancient mummy.

— ben guarino, BostonGlobe.com, "This tiny skeleton found in Chile might look like an alien’s, but genetics studies are uncovering the tragic, true story," 23 Mar. 2018
Were Chile's death-cult mummies inspired by desert conditions?

— emery smith, National Geographic, "Tiny Mummy’s ‘Alien’ Appearance Finally Explained," 22 Mar. 2018
The priest’s mummy was also found decorated with blue and red beads and bronze gilded sheets.

— Washington Post, "Archaeologists find ancient necropolis in Egypt," 24 Feb. 2018
No wonder those North African ancients chose encaustic specifically for mummy portraits.

— christopher knight, latimes.com, "Does the Broad's new Jasper Johns exhibition hit the bull's-eye? It gets darn close," 9 Feb. 2018
But the idea of portraying individuals was thought to be a relatively modern phenomenon until the beginning of the 20th century, when the mummy portraits of Roman Egypt were excavated in the Faiyum region just south of Cairo.

— dmitry samarov, Chicago Reader, "Egyptian death-mask portraits bring their subjects back to life after 2,000 years," 23 Jan. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'mummy.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of mummy

Middle English mummie powdered parts of a mummified body used as a drug, from Anglo-French mumie, from Medieval Latin mumia mummy, powdered mummy, from Arabic mūmiya bitumen, mummy, from Persian mūm wax

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First Known Use: 1615

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mummy

Definition of mummy

chiefly British spelling of mommy

MUMMY Defined for Kids

mummy

noun mum·my \ ˈmə-mē \

Definition of mummy for Students

plural mummies

: a dead body preserved for burial in the manner of the ancient Egyptians

Learn More about mummy

See words that rhyme with mummy Spanish Central: Translation of mummy Nglish: Translation of mummy for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of mummy for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about mummy

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