The Collaborative International Dictionary
Muster \Mus"ter\, n. [OE. moustre, OF. mostre, moustre, F. montre, LL. monstra. See Muster, v. t.]
Something shown for imitation; a pattern. [Obs.]
A show; a display. [Obs.]
--Piers Plowman.-
An assembling or review of troops, as for parade, verification of numbers, inspection, exercise, or introduction into service.
The hurried muster of the soldiers of liberty.
--Hawthorne.See how in warlike muster they appear, In rhombs, and wedges, and half-moons, and wings.
--Milton. -
The sum total of an army when assembled for review and inspection; the whole number of effective men in an army.
And the muster was thirty thousands of men.
--Wyclif.Ye publish the musters of your own bands, and proclaim them to amount of thousands.
--Hooker. -
Any assemblage or display; a gathering.
Of the temporal grandees of the realm, mentof their wives and daughters, the muster was great and splendid.
--Macaulay.Muster book, a book in which military forces are registered.
Muster file, a muster roll.
Muster master (Mil.), one who takes an account of troops, and of their equipment; a mustering officer; an inspector.
Muster roll (Mil.), a list or register of all the men in a company, troop, or regiment, present or accounted for on the day of muster.
To pass muster, to pass through a muster or inspection without censure.
Such excuses will not pass muster with God.
--South.
Usage examples of "muster book".
An hour later, after Yorke had spoken to them all, the men of the Topaz were entered in the Triton's muster book and credited with the bounty paid to volunteers.
But the more he thought about it, the more he thought it was stopped, and anyway, with the last muster book lost, it'd be hard for a seaman to claim his pay from those scallywag clerks at the Navy Board office.
More than 150 men had been brought over from the Juno and the purser had to enter details of each one of them in the muster book.
Set your mark or your thumb to your name in the muster book and she'll sort you out a pitch.
But you will make it clear that, providing he co-operates, you will not even ask to see the muster book .
The muster book merely listed him as Jackson, Thomas, American, born in Charleston, Carolina, volunteer.
Progress of work book, muster book, details of stores, gunnery equipment, canvas, every fibre and nerve of a fullrigged fighting ship of the line.