mire Meaning, Definition & Usage

noun a soft wet area of low-lying land that sinks underfoot
quag; morass; slack; quagmire.
noun deep soft mud in water or slush
slop.
- they waded through the slop
noun a difficulty or embarrassment that is hard to extricate yourself from
- the country is still trying to climb out of the mire left by its previous president
- caught in the mire of poverty
verb entrap
entangle.
- Our people should not be mired in the past
verb cause to get stuck as if in a mire
bog down.
- The mud mired our cart
verb be unable to move further
bog down; get stuck; grind to a halt.
- The car bogged down in the sand
verb soil with mud, muck, or mire
muck; muck up; mud.
- The child mucked up his shirt while playing ball in the garden

AS. mire, mre; akin to D. mier, Icel. maurr, Dan. myre, Sw. myra; cf. also Ir. moirbh, Gr. .

OE. mire, myre; akin to Icel. mrr swamp, Sw. myra marshy ground, and perh. to E. moss.

Deep mud; wet, spongy earth. Chaucer.
He his rider from the lofty steed Would have cast down and trod in dirty mire. Spenser.

imperfect & past participle Mired ; present participle & verbal noun Miring

To cause or permit to stick fast in mire; to plunge or fix in mud; as, to mire a horse or wagon.
To soil with mud or foul matter.
Smirched thus and mired with infamy. Shak.