mullahed

[Dennis Baron]

During the ESPN broadcast of the England-Germany game, the British
commentator said that England "got mullahed."  The OED has only a
little on this -- mullered (the earlier term, cited, I think, in 1993)
and mullahed (a little later), meaning very drunk.

Googling shows there is apparently another meaning, overpowered,
trounced, that is also in use, and is the one signaled by the
commentator. Googling also shows that many people think mullahed may
derive from mullah, though it would seem likely that the word is an r-
less version of mullered, if that term did indeed come first.

But I had never heard the expression before. Anyone out there know
more about it?

db


____________________
Dennis Baron
Professor of English and Linguistics
Department of English
University of Illinois
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