English Explanatory Dictionary

mulligan

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. Ellipsis of mulligan stew.
  2. An unpenalized chance to re-take a stroke that went awry.
  3. An opportunity (sometimes penalized) for a player to reshuffle their cards and draw a new initial hand at the beginning of a game.
  4. A second chance.
name
  1. A surname from Irish.

Pronunciation

/ˈmʌlɪɡən/

Word forms

mulligan mulligans Mullican

Etymology

Attested since the 1930s in the sense “chance to re-take a golf stroke”; probably from the name Mulligan, after a golfer who replayed a stroke. See Wikipedia for more information.

Related words

mulligan car
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