noun · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
General-American, Received-Pronunciation:/mʌst/
Southern-England:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
General-American:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
homophone: mussed
homophone: must
rhymes with -ʌst
1
noun
Meaning 1
Chiefly preceded by in or on: the state each year during which a male animal (usually a camel or an elephant) exhibits increased aggressiveness and sexual activity due to a high level of testosterone.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: also, attributive, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: heat, rut
2
noun
Meaning 2
An instance of this.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
3
noun
Meaning 3
an annual phase of heightened sexual excitement in the males of certain large mammals (especially elephants); is associated with discharge from a gland between the eye and ear
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
the frenzied elephant was in musth
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: phase, stage
History
Etymology
Borrowed from Hindustani (Hindi मस्त (mast) / Urdu مَسْت (mast, “drunk, intoxicated; lustful”); and also from Middle Hindi مَسْت (mst /mast/)), and from its etymon Classical Persian مَسْت (mast, “(adjective) drunk, intoxicated; (literary) in rut; of an elephant: in musth; (noun) drunkard”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *meh2d- (“to be wet; to become wet”).
Across languages
Translations
24 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Azerbaijani:
mest
— state each year during which a male animal exhibits increased aggressiveness and sexual activity; an instance of this
Chinese Mandarin:
狂暴期
(kuángbàoqī)
— state each year during which a male animal exhibits increased aggressiveness and sexual activity; an instance of this
Danish:
must
— state each year during which a male animal exhibits increased aggressiveness and sexual activity; an instance of this
Finnish:
kiima
— state each year during which a male animal exhibits increased aggressiveness and sexual activity; an instance of this
French:
musth
— state each year during which a male animal exhibits increased aggressiveness and sexual activity; an instance of this
German:
Musth
— state each year during which a male animal exhibits increased aggressiveness and sexual activity; an instance of this
Hebrew:
מוסט
— state each year during which a male animal exhibits increased aggressiveness and sexual activity; an instance of this
Hungarian:
kandüh
— state each year during which a male animal exhibits increased aggressiveness and sexual activity; an instance of this
Indonesian:
musth
— state each year during which a male animal exhibits increased aggressiveness and sexual activity; an instance of this
Kannada:
ಮದ
(mada)
— state each year during which a male animal exhibits increased aggressiveness and sexual activity; an instance of this
Lithuanian:
musth
— state each year during which a male animal exhibits increased aggressiveness and sexual activity; an instance of this
Malayalam:
മദം
(madaṁ)
— state each year during which a male animal exhibits increased aggressiveness and sexual activity; an instance of this
Persian:
مستی فیل
— state each year during which a male animal exhibits increased aggressiveness and sexual activity; an instance of this
Polish:
musth
— state each year during which a male animal exhibits increased aggressiveness and sexual activity; an instance of this
Portuguese:
cio
— state each year during which a male animal exhibits increased aggressiveness and sexual activity; an instance of this
Russian:
муст
(must)
— state each year during which a male animal exhibits increased aggressiveness and sexual activity; an instance of this
Spanish:
must
— state each year during which a male animal exhibits increased aggressiveness and sexual activity; an instance of this
Tamil:
களி
(kaḷi)
— state each year during which a male animal exhibits increased aggressiveness and sexual activity; an instance of this
Tamil:
மதநீர்
(matanīr)
— state each year during which a male animal exhibits increased aggressiveness and sexual activity; an instance of this
Tamil:
தானம்
(tāṉam)
— state each year during which a male animal exhibits increased aggressiveness and sexual activity; an instance of this
Tamil:
மதம்
(matam)
— state each year during which a male animal exhibits increased aggressiveness and sexual activity; an instance of this
Telugu:
మదము
(madamu)
— state each year during which a male animal exhibits increased aggressiveness and sexual activity; an instance of this
Thai:
การตกมัน
— state each year during which a male animal exhibits increased aggressiveness and sexual activity; an instance of this
Turkish:
mest
— state each year during which a male animal exhibits increased aggressiveness and sexual activity; an instance of this
