Mull Meaning
/mʌl/Definition, CEFR level C1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
Listen pronunciation
Definition
verbTo work (over) mentally; to cogitate; to ruminate.
verbTo powder; to pulverize.
Sentence Examples
I need time to mull things over before I decide what to do.
This gives the subconscious mind a chance to mull over the original problem.
CEFR Practice Quiz
He decided to ____ over the proposal for a few days before making a final decision.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
I need some time to ____ over the various details of the proposal before I can give you a definitive answer on whether or not we can proceed.
Word Origin & History
Inherited from Middle English molle, mulle (“dust, rubbish”), possibly from Old English myl (“dust, mould”), from Proto-West Germanic *muli, a deverbal formation from *mulljan and thus cognate with Dutch mul (“dust, mould”), German Müll (“rubbish”), Swedish moln (“cloud”) and related to English mill (“to grind”). Alternatively, from Middle French mol or its etymon Latin mollis (“soft”). Some verbal senses are supplied by Middle English mollen (“to soften, dissolve”), from Old French moillier, from Latin *molliāre (“to steep”), itself from mollis; compare moil.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"It was the germ of a thought, which, however, was destined to mull around in his conscious and subconscious mind until it resulted in magnificent achievement."
— 1912 October, Edgar Rice Burroughs, “Tarzan of the Apes”, in The All-Story, New York, N.Y.: Frank A. Munsey Co., →OCLC; republished as chapter 5, in Tarzan of the Apes, New York, N.Y.: A[lbert] L[evi] Burt Company, June 1914, →OCLC:
"But here’s a thought I had as you were speaking just now, and I’m mulling it over."
— 2010, Plato, “Euthyphro”, in Christopher Rowe, transl., The Last Days of Socrates, Penguin Books Ltd., →ISBN, line 9c:
"When Morrison mulls the pluses and minuses associated with rebuking Kelly for undermining the government’s public health messaging, the prime minister faces a genuine substantive dilemma, and that goes to the risks of amplification."
— 2021 February 2, Katharine Murphy, “Scott Morrison must heed the lesson of Donald Trump and slap down Craig Kelly”, in The Guardian, archived from the original on 27 Apr 2021:
"'That's rather like another plant where a string of pearls was changed some years ago,' volunteered Greatorex, laying aside the paper in favour of his own reminiscences. […]
'Yes; they mulled that by not copying the sale label closely enough, and the attendant noticed it when the necklace was laid down again. […]'"
— 1927, Ernest Bramah, Max Carrados Mysteries:
"Mr. HERDMAN. — The honourable member for Nelson says they made a mull of it. If the honourable gentleman had been a financial authority he would never have given expression to such a thought."
— 1904, Parliamentary Debates, New Zealand. Parliament. House of Representatives, page 83:
Explore More C1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
He decided to ____ over the proposal for a few days before making a final decision.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
I need some time to ____ over the various details of the proposal before I can give you a definitive answer on whether or not we can proceed.