Muf"fle (mf"f'l), n. The bare end of the nose between the nostrils; --
used esp. of ruminants.
Muf"fle, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Muffled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Muffling
(?).] [Cf. F. moufle a mitten, LL. muffula, OD. moffel a muff. See
Muff.] 1. To wrap up in something that conceals or protects; to wrap,
as the face and neck, in thick and disguising folds; hence, to conceal
or cover the face of; to envelop; to inclose; -- often with up. South.
The face lies muffled up within the garment.
Addison.
He muffled with a cloud his mournful eyes.
Dryden.
Muffled up in darkness and superstition.
Arbuthnot.
2. To prevent seeing, or hearing, or speaking, by wraps bound about the
head; to blindfold; to deafen.
3. To wrap with something that dulls or deadens the sound of; as, to
muffle the strings of a drum, or that part of an oar which rests in the
rowlock.
Muf"fle, v. i. [Cf. F. maffle, mumble, D. moffelen.] To speak
indistinctly, or without clear articulation.
Muf"fle, n. [F. moufle, prop., a mitten, from the resemblance in shape.
See Muffle, v. t., Muff.] 1. Anything with which another thing, as an
oar or drum, is muffled; also, a boxing glove; a muff.
2. (Metal.) An earthenware compartment or oven, often shaped like a
half cylinder, used in furnaces to protect objects heated from the
direct action of the fire, as in scorification of ores, cupellation of
ore buttons, etc.
3. (Ceramics) A small oven for baking and fixing the colors of painted
or printed pottery, without exposing the pottery to the flames of the
furnace or kiln.