Hypertext Webster Gateway: "muff"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Whitethroat \White"throat`\, n. (Zo["o]l.)
Any one of several species of Old World warblers, esp. the
common European species ({Sylvia cinerea}), called also
{strawsmear}, {nettlebird}, {muff}, and {whitecap}, the
garden whitethroat, or golden warbler ({S. hortensis}), and
the lesser whitethroat ({S. curruca}).
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Muff \Muff\ (m[u^]f), n. [Cf. LG. muff, D. mof, G., Dan., & Sw.
muff, F. moufle mitten, LL. muffula, MHG. mouwe sleeve, D.
mouw, and E. muffle, v.]
1. A soft cover of cylindrical form, usually of fur, worn by
women to shield the hands from cold.
2. (Mech.) A short hollow cylinder surrounding an object, as
a pipe.
3. (Glass Manuf.) A blown cylinder of glass which is
afterward flattened out to make a sheet.
4. [Perhaps a different word; cf. Prov. E. maffle to
slammer.] A stupid fellow; a poor-spirited person.
[Colloq.] ``A muff of a curate.'' --Thackeray.
5. [See 4.] (Baseball) A failure to hold a ball when once in
the hands.
6. (Zo["o]l.) The whitethroat. [Prov. Eng.]
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Muff \Muff\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Muffed}; p. pr. & vb. n.
{Muffing}.]
To handle awkwardly; to fumble; to fail to hold, as a ball,
in catching it.
From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)
muff
n 1: a warm tubular covering for the hands
2: dropping the ball (in baseball or football) [syn: {fumble}]
v 1: fail to catch, as of a ball
2: make a mess of, destroy or ruin [syn: {botch}, {bumble}, {fumble},
{botch up}, {blow}, {flub}, {screw up}, {ball up}, {spoil},
{muck up}, {bungle}, {fluff}, {bollix}, {bollix up}, {bollocks},
{bollocks up}, {bobble}, {mishandle}, {louse up}, {foul
up}, {mess up}, {fuck up}]
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