mug shot, to mug (1948)

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Thee police mug shots serve as the perfect anti-drugs campaign
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mug² (mŭg) 
n.

1. Informal.
   1. The human face.
   2. The area of the human mouth, chin, and jaw.
   3. A grimace.
   4. A mug shot.
2. A thug; a hoodlum.
3. Chiefly British Slang. A victim or dupe.

mugshot

noun

informal

• a photograph of a person’s face made for an official purpose, especially police records: when shown mugshots, the victim was unable to recognize anyone
• humorous any photograph of a person’s face: a mugshot on the book’s cover shows the author

Etymology[edit]

Compound of mug ‎(“face”) + shot ‎(“snapshot”), US. Compare mug ‎(“portrait”).

Noun[edit]

mug shot ‎(plural mug shots)

1. A photograph taken of the head and shoulders, often from the front and in profile, usually taken in conjunction with somebody'sarrest.
2. (Britain, slang) An unflattering photograph of a person's face.

Derived terms[edit]

mug

VERB (mugs, mugging, mugged)

1[WITH OBJECT] Attack and rob (someone) in a public place: 1948 拳擊：打臉he was mugged by three men who stole his bike

More example sentencesSynonyms

2[NO OBJECT] informal Make faces, especially silly or exaggerated ones, before an audienceor a camera:he mugged for the camera