mavourneen

English

Etymology

Hiberno-English, from Irish mo mhuirnín (“my darling”) (diminutive of muirn (“affection”)).

Pronunciation

(Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /məˈvʊəniːn/, /məˈvɔːniːn/
(General American) IPA^(key): /məˈvʊɹniːn/, /məˈvɝniːn/
(Ireland) IPA^(key): /məˈvuːɹniːn/

Noun

mavourneen (plural mavourneens)

(Ireland) darling, sweetheart
- 1850 (approx.), Anonymous, Finnegan's Wake
  Biddy O'Brien began to cry
  
  "Such a nice clean corpse, did you ever see?
  
  "Arrah, Tim, mavourneen, why did you die?"
  
  "Ah, shut your gob," said Paddy McGee!

Related terms

avourneen

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