mush
UK[mʌʃ]US[mʌʃ]
n
A soft, wet, pulpy mass.
n
A thick porridge made from cornmeal.
n
Feeble or sentimental emotion or writing; excessive sentimentality.
v
To reduce to or become a soft, pulpy mass.
v
To travel over snow with a dogsled.
interj
A command urging sled dogs to start or go faster.
Etymology
The word 'mush' has a dual origin, representing two distinct words that converged in spelling. The primary sense of a soft, pulpy mass likely originated as a variant of 'mash', influenced by onomatopoeia for something soft and squelchy. The second, unrelated sense, as a command to sled dogs, is a borrowing from Canadian French 'marche!', an imperative meaning "go!" or "advance!", itself derived from the verb 'marcher' (to walk). The convergence of these two etymologies under the same simple, phonetically expressive spelling 'mush' is a coincidence of linguistic history.
Analysis
The word 'mush' is a simplex word. It is a loanword and an onomatopoeic formation.
Examples
The vegetables had boiled down to a tasteless mush.
He dismissed the romantic film as mere sentimental mush.
The musher yelled "Mush!" to the team of huskies.