All 3 Uses of
muster
in
The Hidden Oracle
- True, I had mustered a few godly powers at important moments—a burst of divine strength against the Germani, a hay fever arrow against the Colossus—but I could not rely on those abilities.†
p. 346.5 *mustered = gathered
- "I'm the sun god," I said, trying to muster more confidence than I felt.†
p. 214.2
- I gave it my utmost effort, channeling all the saccharine schmaltz I could muster from the 1970s.†
p. 231.4
Definitions:
-
(1)
(muster as in: muster strength or the crew) to gatherThe exact meaning of this sense of muster is often subject to its context. For example:
- "mustered her courage/strength/a smile" -- to gather from within
- "muster the soldiers/crew" -- to gather -- typically for inspection
- "muster volunteers/votes" -- to gather enough to do something
-
(2)
(muster as in: didn't pass muster) inspection -- especially of soldiers or a crew
-
(3)
(meaning too rare to warrant focus) meaning too rare to warrant focus:
More rarely, muster can refer to a counting or census. Much more rarely, muster can refer to a call to duty such as compulsory military service or jury duty. In that sense, you may see the expression muster in or muster out. Still more rarely, a muster can refer to a group of peacocks.