mugwump means A (male) leader; an important (male) person.
mugwump is pronounced /ˈmʌɡwʌmp/.
Why “mugwump” is a great word
A person who remains aloof from party politics, especially a Republican who refused to support James G. Blaine in the 1884 U.S. presidential election. From Massachusett mugquomp, mummugquomp ("war leader"); the political sense was influenced by a folk etymology depicting a person sitting on a fence with their 'mug' (face) on one side and 'wump' (rump) on the other. Unlike a partisan, sworn to the banner, or a moderate, navigating the middle way, a mugwump makes a principled desertion of the tribe itself. It is the scent of old newsprint and cigar smoke in a study where party circulars are tossed unread into the fire, the crisp withholding of a handshake at a rally, the quiet dignity of a vote cast from outside the noisy tent—a testament to the lonely, often futile, sovereignty of individual conscience.
Etymology
The noun is borrowed from Massachusett mugquomp, mummugquomp (“war leader”). Folk etymology reinterpreted it as referring to a person who sat on the fence with their mug (“face”) on one side and wump (“rump”) on the other, which influenced political cartoons during the 1884 United States presidential election.
The verb is derived from the noun.
noun
- A (male) leader; an important (male) person.
- A member of the Republican Party who declined to support the party's nominee James G. Blaine (1830–1893) during the 1884 United States presidential election, believing him to be corrupt, and instead supported the Democratic Party's candidate Grover Cleveland (1837–1908).
- A person who purports to stay aloof from party politics.
- One who switches from supporting one political party to another, especially for personal benefit.
- A person who stays neutral or non-committal; a fence sitter; also, a person who maintains an aloof and often self-important demeanour.e.g.“Anthea hasn't a notion in her head but to vamp a lot of silly mugwumps. She's set her heart on that tennis bloke [...] whom the papers are making such a fuss about.”
- A foolish person.
verb
- To behave like a mugwump.
- To purport to stay aloof and independent, especially from party politics.
Words closest in meaning
By meaning, not spelling — each word's AI semantic fingerprint, nearest first.
- sachem 78% match — A chief of one or several Native American tribe(s), especially of the Algonquians; a sagamore. vs mugwump →
- gerrymander 77% match — To divide a geographic area into voting districts in such a way as to give an unfair advantage to one party in an election. vs mugwump →
- mumpsimus 77% match — A person who obstinately adheres to old ways in spite of clear evidence that they are wrong; an ignorant and bigoted opponent of reform. vs mugwump →
- mossyback 76% match — A person with old-fashioned views; hence, one who is very conservative or reactionary; a mossback. vs mugwump →
- antisuffragist 76% match — One who opposes suffrage. vs mugwump →
- impartiality 76% match — The quality of being impartial; fairness. vs mugwump →
- figurehead 76% match — A carved figure on the prow of a sailing ship. vs mugwump →
- recuse 75% match — To reject or repudiate (an authority, a person, a court judgment, etc.). vs mugwump →