muse 1 of 2

noun

Definition of musenext
as in poet
a person who writes poetry where is the muse who will sing of this man's great and noble deeds?

Synonyms & Similar Words

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muse

2 of 2

verb

as in to ruminate

Related Words

Synonym Chooser

How is the word muse different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of muse are meditate, ponder, and ruminate. While all these words mean "to consider or examine attentively or deliberately," muse suggests a more or less focused daydreaming as in remembrance.

mused upon childhood joys

When is it sensible to use meditate instead of muse?

While in some cases nearly identical to muse, meditate implies a definite focusing of one's thoughts on something so as to understand it deeply.

meditated on the meaning of life

When might ponder be a better fit than muse?

The meanings of ponder and muse largely overlap; however, ponder implies a careful weighing of a problem or, often, prolonged inconclusive thinking about a matter.

pondered the course of action

Where would ruminate be a reasonable alternative to muse?

While the synonyms ruminate and muse are close in meaning, ruminate implies going over the same matter in one's thoughts again and again but suggests little of either purposive thinking or rapt absorption.

ruminated on past disappointments

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of muse
Noun
The name, Calliope, nods to the Greek muse of epic poetry, who, like Moroney, was said to be a vulnerable storyteller. — Kaleigh Werner, Footwear News, 9 July 2026 Kelce’s since become quite the muse for Swift—earning several references on TLOAS—and the couple continues to show off their storybook romance with public outings at sports games, friends’s weddings, and the occasional awards show. — Alicia Brunker, InStyle, 3 July 2026
Verb
When EviDenS de Beauté launched 20 years ago, founder Charles-Edouard Barthes started the brand as a love letter to his wife and muse Eriko Nakamura. — Fairchild Studio, Footwear News, 13 Nov. 2025 Taken one at a time, the deployments can seem random or fickle — Trump will often muse about sending troops into a city, only to back track his comments and focus on a different city days later. — Kat Lonsdorf, NPR, 3 Nov. 2025 See All Example Sentences for muse
Recent Examples of Synonyms for muse
  1. poet
  2. ruminate
  3. minstrel
  4. ponder
  5. meditate
  6. contemplate
  7. reflect
  8. project
Noun
  • Robin Myers is a poet, translator, essayist, and 2023 NEA Translation Fellow.
    — Cristina Dorador, The Dial, 14 July 2026
  • For much of her adult life, poet Mary Oliver pursued her métier in relative obscurity, publishing well respected if modestly selling volumes of her work.
    — Matthew Carey, Deadline, 14 July 2026
Definition of poet
Verb
  • Carmy is still figuring out his next move, interviewing for an internship at an architecture firm while ruminating on his experience at the Bear.
    — Jen Chaney, Vulture, 26 June 2026
  • The characters have little time to make life-or-death decisions, let alone ruminate, and the action vacillates between triage and doctors expertly improvising solutions — like Mel (Taylor Dearden) donating her own blood, and Javadi (Shabana Azeez) going MacGyver mode with a tracheal tube.
    — EW Staff, Entertainment Weekly, 25 June 2026
Definition of ruminate
Noun
  • The musician-scholar Rhiannon Giddens, a leading interpreter of 19th-century American songs, told me that discussing Foster’s context is difficult because minstrel entertainment is so little understood today.
    — David A. Graham, The Atlantic, 2 July 2026
  • They were published in the North and South, performed in racist minstrel shows and polite parlors, and sung by abolitionists and defenders of enslavement alike.
    — Christopher Lynch, The Conversation, 1 July 2026
Definition of minstrel
Verb
  • The central theme was the figurative — and literal — significance of passing the ball, including asking audience members to ponder what their passing game is like and the ramifications of being a ball hog.
    — Vahe Gregorian July 10, Kansas City Star, 10 July 2026
  • Other states could soon follow — including New York, which is pondering a similar bill — in a domino effect that could completely derail the automaker’s current trajectory.
    — Victor Tangermann, Futurism, 9 July 2026
Definition of ponder
Verb
  • So many of the characters themselves are in a state of reflection, meditating on the wide swaths of time that are behind them.
    — Sky Davis, Christian Science Monitor, 13 July 2026
  • And there is a quiet room where the boys can meditate, relax, or read.
    — Annalisa Merelli, STAT, 10 July 2026
Definition of meditate
Verb
  • Harry was said to have been contemplating bringing his children to meet the king.
    — Brian Niemietz, New York Daily News, 10 July 2026
  • The Sox are contemplating selecting either UCLA shortstop Roch Cholowsky, Texas high school shortstop Grady Emerson or Georgia Tech catcher Vahn Lackey with the first pick.
    — LaMond Pope, Chicago Tribune, 10 July 2026
Definition of contemplate
Verb
  • Or just a phase, as audiences and designers reflect the culture swirling around them?
    — Lucy Maguire, Vogue, 6 July 2026
  • Poland, the Baltic states, and Nordic countries have moved fastest, reflecting their proximity to Russia.
    — Elsa Ohlen, CNBC, 6 July 2026
Definition of reflect
Verb
  • Last school year, enrollment at traditional public schools fell by 13,000 students; this year, Steiger projected the district’s enrollment to drop by another 8,000.
    — Austin Horn July 15, Miami Herald, 15 July 2026
  • Tehran has also continued to project a readiness for further conflict, with defense analysts telling CNBC there was little indication that the latest escalation between the two countries was nearing a diplomatic resolution.
    — Lee Ying Shan,Tanaya Macheel, CNBC, 15 July 2026
Definition of project

Browse Nearby Words

muscularly
muse
mused
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Cite this Entry

“Muse.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/muse. Accessed 17 Jul. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on muse

Nglish: Translation of muse for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about muse

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