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.
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.]
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} ({Sylvia hortensis}), and the {lesser whitethroat} ({Sylvia curruca}).