muffin

Muffin comes from earlier moofin, likely a diminutive of Low German Muffe, meaning 'small cake' (plural Muffen), from Middle Low German muffe, 'small pastry.' A less likely theory ties it to Old French pain moflet, 'soft bread.'

The word entered English as moofin before settling into its modern spelling and sense, staying tied to small baked goods throughout. Separately, its slang sense meaning 'vulva' picked up influence from the unrelated word muff.

It shares a root with the Low German Muffe and Muffen, the small cakes it was diminutive of.