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Coffee lovers get a lot of mugs as gifts, not really suitable for coffee. They are not properly glazed, stain too easily, do not hold heat well; are not shaped ergonomically, e.g., too wide and cylindrical; chip or break easily, etc.

They're better for holding odd things: pens or pencils, scissors, loose change, air ferns, coffeehouse gift cards, and lots of candy. Nice gift holders, but not good for coffee, long term. And not "cheap mugs" because they were purchased at a rather expensive gift shop.

  • Perhaps "graphic art mugs"? As seen on Etsy.com.
  • A non-coffee mug would be what? A soup mug and what else?
  • A gift mug just seems like an odd way to refer to a free one, maybe:

A: Put all the gift mugs in the Goodwill box.
B1: Okay, weirdo.
Or B2: OK, I have some gift ties to put in there too.

It could go either way. I wonder what the best term would be.

Analogy:
They're like gift baskets that teachers receive, you know. Some are really nice, sturdy baskets; but others are just gift containers, basically. You wouldn't want to collect apples in them or anything like that.

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8 Answers 8

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You could try show mug(s) or trophy mug or collectors' mug or themed mug.

I'd probably go with "collector" in light of those that come to mind.

Many businesses 'gift' branded mugs at conferences/conventions, so "promotional mug(s)" might be appropriate.

Mugs may be used for many things, including drinks. Elaborate with "coffee" only if necessary.

An alternative to the VG suggestion ornamental might be display mug as in "meant for display, not use".

Quick Google search brought up commemorative mugs/cups for special events like a Queen's Jubilee or a Royal Wedding.

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    I'd say display mug would probably be the most effective warning IRL. Commented Aug 9 at 14:42
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    Most of these possibilities would only be correct if they actually were show mugs, trophy mugs or themed mugs. OP does not indicate that. Besides, there's nothing to stop show mugs, trophy mugs and themed mugs from being properly glazed, difficult to stain or hold heat well. Thus, -1 answer. Commented Aug 9 at 19:03
  • @RonJohn Thanks for your feedback. Seems you might be a "mug only ever gets to be half full" kinda guy; not predisposed to granting leeway... For example, any "decorative mug" (top voted suggestion) made be serviceable or not. Any object's ultimate use may not align with the gift givers' intent. How many "artworks" are on display in the cupboards, attics and garages of recipients? Doesn't matter. The fun's gone... Commented Aug 9 at 20:24
  • @Fe2O3 Mugs are always full. Except in space and the best vacuum chambers. And I gave an explicit reason why I think you're incorrect: there's nothing to stop show mugs, trophy mugs and themed mugs from being properly glazed, difficult to stain or hold heat well. (TBF, "show mug" is a bit ambiguous: did you get it from a trade show -- and thus be good for drinking coffee -- or is it only for showing off?) Commented Aug 9 at 21:19
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    @RonJohn I'm not going to get into a debate. Thank you, again, for clarifying your opinion. Commented Aug 9 at 21:26
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+50

Instead of graphic art mug, I'd go for decorative mug.

I would secretly prefer nominally useful mug, but people complain, rightly, that it doesn't have enough Google hits. Yet.

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    Of course, I should've thought to google "decorative." Commented Aug 7 at 7:28
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    'Decorative mug' is idiomatic, with a quarter of a million hits in a Google search. But there are none for 'nominally useful mug', and invented phrases constitute writing advice rather than established usages. ELU looks at established usages; writing advice belongs on another site. Commented Aug 7 at 23:37
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    decorative because a ceramic or glass something can decorate something. And because, a mug is not an ornament. Commented Aug 9 at 15:22
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    @Fe2O3 Very GOOD. :) Commented Aug 9 at 23:58
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    @FE2O3 have you considered using Fe₂O₃ (Unicode)? Note: this site's font is unkind to digits. Commented Aug 10 at 17:21
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Those are novelty mugs, particularly if their defining quality is being unusual.

Oxford Learner's:

different and unusual; intended to be amusing and to catch people's attention: a novelty teapot

Other senses mention decorativeness or cheapness; in particular novelty tends to be contrasted with utility, making it a good fit here.

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  • Yes, I think so, even though I asked a question before which indicates I use novelty incorrectly sometimes. Commented Aug 9 at 11:34
  • Maybe it's too obvious to be worth mentioning, but this only describes a subset of what the question asks about. A Christmas mug shaped like Santa Claus's head, say, would be a novelty mug, but not a normal mug with a pretty decoration that happens to be too delicate to see regular use. Commented Aug 10 at 17:25
  • @Carmeister The Santa Claus mug would be a prototypical example, yeah, and an artisan mug with gold edging would be something else. But a cheap print of Monet's lilies that comes off under your fingernail, bought at an art museum to show you were there? I'd call that a novelty. Commented Aug 10 at 18:08
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I would call a mug that looks good but is useless for purpose

an ornamental mug

Cambridge Dictionary – beautiful rather than useful

Collins Dictionary – Ornamental things have no practical function but are put in a place because they look attractive.

Longman – designed to make something look attractive rather than to be used for a particular purpose

Sadly Merriam-Webster has nothing to support the answer.

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    So 'ornamental mug'? Commented Aug 7 at 19:01
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    @EdwinAshworth from the question title I would call the mug an ornament but have reworked the answer to oblige. Commented Aug 7 at 19:47
  • You could add support for this, showing whether 'ornamental mug' is more of a fixed phrase than say 'decorative mug' ... and especially 'nominally useful mug' and 'impractical coffee mug' (which are no more than suggested free combinations, not standard usages). Commented Aug 8 at 23:28
  • @EdwinAshworth for some reason Ngram Viewer shows that not be have been the case since around the accession of ERII. Commented Aug 9 at 8:56
  • A mug can be a decoration (on a desk) but it is not an ornament. Commented Aug 9 at 15:23
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They are not properly glazed, stain too easily, do not hold heat well; are not shaped ergonomically, e.g., too wide and cylindrical; chip or break easily, etc.

Put all the gifts we'll never use, like that impractical coffee mug, in the Goodwill box.

impractical (adj.)

If you describe an object, idea, or course of action as impractical, you mean that it is not sensible or realistic, and does not work well in practice.

When stalking subjects, a tripod is impractical.
Collins

Impractical describes an object that technically works for the intended purpose, but has design flaws or other drawbacks that make it unsuited for that purpose.

I grabbed the Darth Vader head-shaped mug—by far the most obnoxious, space-hogging, impractical mug of the bunch—and filled it to the eye sockets from the carafe.
Amy Marden; The Parts We Lost (2021)

They [beer steins] may also be seen in sizes larger than one liter, though vessels containing three or five liters of beer are impractical for drinking.
Bill Yenne; Beer (2014)

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  • I was bought yet another impractical for my birthday. / While correct in a tongue-in-cheek way, I don't think this is really useful on a site aimed at proficient speakers ... and it's not what OP wants, from the examples. Commented Aug 7 at 23:18
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    @EdwinAshworth Are you thinking there is a specific word for (just) a mug that fits the OP's description but not other useful objects? And why are you pointing to a noun when the OP gives three examples of adjectives that he was toying with? Not your most helpful comment. Commented Aug 8 at 0:35
  • Well, it's a phrase request, not an SWR. I don't expect single words for any and every thing. We're not German, variable-name advisors. I suggest thing1 and thing2. But we all appreciate an actual answer. Thank you. Love the Vader mug quote. Commented Aug 8 at 2:09
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    @HippoSawrUs The phrase would be impractical coffee mug. I edited my answer. Commented Aug 8 at 7:12
  • Yes, I understood that before the edit; thanks again. The first two sentences were meant more for @EdwinAshworth really, for clarification. Sorry for the missing tag. Commented Aug 8 at 7:40
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If it looks like a coffee mug, I think many would call it that, even if it's not really well designed for coffee.

But I'm not a coffee drinker, so I rarely use any of the mugs I've received as gifts for this (but I occasionally drink cocoa with them). My Stack Overflow mug is indeed holding pens on my computer desk.

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  • While possibly better than some other suggestions, does this answer really belong on a site aimed at linguists? Commented Aug 8 at 23:29
  • Well, desk decor mugs are a thing. Good lead. Commented Aug 9 at 13:51
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    Simply calling them coffee mugs may work in some contexts, but doesn't help someone who needs to distinguish them from the mugs that are well designed for actual coffee drinking. The person A in the OP's example does not want to get rid of all coffee mugs. Commented Aug 9 at 20:56
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As a long phrase is still a phrase here is a possibility that would at least, I think, do away with ambiguities:

  • expensive looking coffee mug of cheap make

Guns of the Black Ghost Volumes 1 and 2 - Tom Johnson · 2018 For here, always at the ready, were suits of cheap make, shoes and ties of equal bad taste.

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Another attested name is the alliterative motto mug.

She used her motto mug for pens and pencils but at the company holiday party she filled it with booze and got blotto.

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  • Well, that's what it is. The company name is almost a synonym of that. I should've known, but they are nice looking. Commented Oct 19 at 16:03

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