meagre (adj.) Look up meagre at
chiefly British English spelling of meager (q.v.); for spelling, see -re.
meal (n.1) Look up meal at
meal (n.2) Look up meal at
mealtime (n.) Look up mealtime at
also meal-time, late 12c., from meal (n.1) + time (n.). Etymologically, a tautology.
mealy (adj.) Look up mealy at
"resembling or consisting of meal," 1530s, from meal (n.2) + -y (2). Related: Mealiness.
mealy-mouthed (adj.) Look up mealy-mouthed at
"afraid to say what one really thinks," 1570s; first element perhaps from Old English milisc "sweet," from Proto-Germanic *meduz "honey" (see mead (n.1)), which suits the sense, but if the Old English word did not survive long enough to be the source of this, perhaps the first element is from meal (n.2) on notion of the "softness" of ground flour (compare Middle English melishe (adj.) "friable, loose," used of soils).
mean (v.1) Look up mean at
"intend, have in mind," Old English mænan "to mean, intend, signify; tell, say; complain, lament," from West Germanic *mainijan (source also of Old Frisian mena "to signify," Old Saxon menian "to intend, signify, make known," Dutch menen, German meinen "think, suppose, be of the opinion"), from PIE *meino- "opinion, intent" (source also of Old Church Slavonic meniti "to think, have an opinion," Old Irish mian "wish, desire," Welsh mwyn "enjoyment"), perhaps from root *men- "think" (see mind (n.)). Conversational question you know what I mean? attested by 1834.
mean (adj.1) Look up mean at
"low-quality," c. 1200, "shared by all," from imene, from Old English gemæne "common, public, general, universal, shared by all," from Proto-Germanic *ga-mainiz "possessed jointly" (source also of Old Frisian mene, Old Saxon gimeni, Middle Low German gemeine, Middle Dutch gemene, Dutch gemeen, German gemein, Gothic gamains "common"), from PIE *ko-moin-i- "held in common," a compound adjective formed from collective prefix *ko- "together" (Proto-Germanic *ga-) + *moi-n-, suffixed form of PIE root *mei- (1) "to change, exchange" (see mutable). Compare second element in common (adj.), a word with a sense evolution parallel to that of this word.

Of things, "inferior, second-rate," from late 14c. (a secondary sense in Old English was "false, wicked"). Notion of "so-so, mediocre" led to confusion with mean (n.). Meaning "inferior in rank or status" (of persons) emerged early 14c.; that of "ordinary" from late 14c.; that of "stingy, nasty" first recorded 1660s; weaker sense of "disobliging, pettily offensive" is from 1839, originally American English slang. Inverted sense of "remarkably good" (i.e. plays a mean saxophone) first recorded c. 1900, perhaps from phrase no mean _______ "not inferior" (1590s, also, "not average," reflecting further confusion with mean (n.)).
mean (n.) Look up mean at
"that which is halfway between extremes," early 14c., from Old French meien "middle, means, intermediary," noun use of adjective from Latin medianus "of or that is in the middle" (see mean (adj.2)). Oldest sense is musical; mathematical sense is from c. 1500. Some senses reflect confusion with mean (adj.1). This is the mean in by no means (late 15c.).
mean (v.2) Look up mean at
"calculate an arithmetical mean," 1882, from mean (n.).
mean (adj.2) Look up mean at
"occupying a middle or intermediate place," mid-14c., from Anglo-French meines (plural), Old French meien, variant of moiien "mid-, medium, common, middle-class" (12c., Modern French moyen), from Late Latin medianus "of the middle," from Latin medius "in the middle" (see medial (adj.)). Meaning "intermediate in time" is from mid-15c. Mathematical sense is from late 14c.
mean-spirited (adj.) Look up mean-spirited at
also meanspirited, 1690s, from mean (adj.1) + -spirited. Ancient Greek had the same image in mikropsykhos.
meander (n.) Look up meander at
1570s, "confusion, intricacies," from Latin meander "a winding course," from Greek Maiandros, name of a river in Caria noted for its winding course (the Greeks used the name figuratively for winding patterns). In reference to river courses, in English, from 1590s. Adjectival forms are meandrine (1846); meandrous (1650s).
meander (v.) Look up meander at
"flow in a winding course" (of rivers), 1610s, from meander (n.). Of a person, "to wander aimlessly" (1831), originally of persons traveling on a river (1821), perhaps influenced by confusion with maunder [OED]. Related: Meandered; meandering.
meanie (n.) Look up meanie at
also meany, "cruel person," 1927, from mean (adj.) + -y (3).
meaning (n.) Look up meaning at
"sense, import, intent," c. 1300, from mean (v.).
meaningful (adj.) Look up meaningful at
1827, from meaning (n.) + -ful. Related: Meaningfully.
meaningless (adj.) Look up meaningless at
meanly (adv.) Look up meanly at
1580s, "indifferently;" 1590s, "basely;" c. 1600, "illiberally;" from mean (adj.1) + -ly (2).
meanness (n.) Look up meanness at
1550s, "weakness," from mean (adj.) + -ness. Sense of "baseness, poverty" is from 1650s; that of "stinginess" from 1755.
means (n.) Look up means at
"course of action," late 14c., from mean (n.); sense of "wealth" is first recorded c. 1600. Compare French moyens, German Mittel. Phrase by no means attested from late 15c.; means-test is from 1930.
meant Look up meant at
past participle of mean (v.).
meantime (n.) Look up meantime at
also mean time, mid-14c., from mean (adj.2) "middle, intermediate" + time (n.). Late 14c. as an adverb. In the mean space "meanwhile" was in use 16c.-18c.
meanwhile (n.) Look up meanwhile at
also mean while, mid-14c., from mean (adj.2) "middle, intermediate" + while (n.). Late 14c. as an adverb.
meany Look up meany at
see meanie.
measles (n.) Look up measles at

measly (adj.) Look up measly at
"affected with measles," 1680s, from measle (see measles) + -y (2); sense of "meager and contemptible" first recorded 1864 in British slang.
measurability (n.) Look up measurability at
1690s; see measurable + -ity.
measurable (adj.) Look up measurable at
c. 1300, "moderate," from Old French mesurable "restrained, moderate, sensible; restricted," from Late Latin mensurabilis, from mensurare (see measure (v.)). Meaning "that can be measured" is from mid-14c. Related: Measurably.
measure (v.) Look up measure at
c. 1300, "to deal out by measure," from Old French mesurer "measure; moderate, curb" (12c.), from Late Latin mensurare "to measure," from Latin mensura "a measuring, a measurement; thing to measure by," from mensus, past participle of metiri "to measure," from PIE *me- (2) "to measure" (see meter (n.2)).

measure (n.) Look up measure at
measured (adj.) Look up measured at
measurement (n.) Look up measurement at
1751, "act of measuring," from measure (v.) + -ment. Related: Measurements. Meaning "dimension obtained by measuring" is from 1756.
meat (n.) Look up meat at
Old English mete "food, item of food" (paired with drink), from Proto-Germanic *mati (source also of Old Frisian mete, Old Saxon meti, Old Norse matr, Old High German maz, Gothic mats "food," Middle Dutch, Dutch metworst, German Mettwurst "type of sausage"), from PIE *mad-i-, from root *mad- "moist, wet," also with reference to food qualities, (source also of Sanskrit medas- "fat" (n.), Old Irish mat "pig;" see mast (n.2)).

Narrower sense of "flesh used as food" is first attested c. 1300; similar sense evolution in French viande "meat," originally "food." In Middle English, vegetables still could be called grene-mete (15c.). Figurative sense of "essential part" is from 1901. Dark meat, white meat popularized 19c., supposedly as euphemisms for leg and breast, but earliest sources use both terms without apparent embarrassment.
The choicest parts of a turkey are the side bones, the breast, and the thigh bones. The breast and wings are called light meat; the thigh-bones and side-bones dark meat. When a person declines expressing a preference, it is polite to help to both kinds. [Lydia Maria Child, "The American Frugal Housewife," Boston, 1835]
First record of meat loaf is from 1876. Meat-market "place where one looks for sex partners" is from 1896 (meat in various sexual senses of "penis, vagina, body regarded as a sex object, prostitute" are attested from 1590s; Old English for "meat-market" was flæsccyping ('flesh-cheaping')); meat wagon "ambulance" is from 1920, American English slang, said to date from World War I (in a literal sense by 1857). Meat-grinder in the figurative sense attested by 1951. Meat-hook in colloquial transferred sense "arm" attested by 1919.
meatball (n.) Look up meatball at
1801, from meat + ball (n.1). As an insult to a person, by 1941.
Meath Look up Meath at
county in Ireland, from Irish An Mhi, literally "the middle."
meathead (n.) Look up meathead at
"stupid person," 1945, from meat + head (n.).
meatless (adj.) Look up meatless at
Old English meteleas "without food, without eating," see meat + -less. Meaning "without meat" is from mid-14c.
meaty (adj.) Look up meaty at
"full of meat," 1787, from meat (n.) + -y (2). Figurative sense "full of substance" is from 1881. Related: Meatiness.
Mecca Look up Mecca at
mechanic (adj.) Look up mechanic at
late 14c., "pertaining to or involving mechanical labor" (now usually mechanical), also "having to do with tools," from Latin mechanicus, from Greek mekhanikos "full of resources, inventive, ingenious," literally "mechanical, pertaining to machines," from mekhane (see machine (n.)). Meaning "of the nature of or pertaining to machines" is from 1620s.
mechanic (n.) Look up mechanic at
"manual laborer," late 14c., from Latin mechanicus, from Greek mekhanikos "an engineer," noun use of adjective meaning "full of resources, inventive, ingenious" (see mechanic (adj.)). Sense of "one who is employed in manual labor, a handicraft worker, an artisan" (chief sense through early 19c.) is attested from 1560s. Sense of "skilled workman who is concerned with making or repair of machinery" is from 1660s, but not the main sense until the rise of the automobile.
mechanical (adj.) Look up mechanical at
early 15c., "of or pertaining to machines," from mechanic (adj.) + -al (1); of persons or human actions, "resembling machines, automatic" it is from c. 1600. Related: Mechanically. Mechanical-minded is recorded from 1820.
mechanics (n.) Look up mechanics at
1640s, based on Late Latin mechanica, from Greek mekhanike, mekhanika (see mechanic (adj.)); also see -ics.
mechanism (n.) Look up mechanism at
mechanization (n.) Look up mechanization at
1834, from mechanize + -ation.
In our country, the ancient languages are studied, to a sad extent, as a mere exercise in the technics of etymology, syntax and prosody; and when thus pursued, there can be no good reason for so great a sacrifice of time and labor, or for that mechanization (if we may make a term) of mind which is the natural result. ["American Annals of Education and Instruction," December 1834]
mechanize (v.) Look up mechanize at
1670s; see mechanic (adj.) + -ize. Related: Mechanized; mechanizing.
mechanized (adj.) Look up mechanized at
in the military sense of "equipped with or using mechanical vehicles and weapons," 1928, from past participle of mechanize (v.).
mechano- Look up mechano- at
word-forming element meaning "mechanics, mechanism," from Greek mekhano-, comb. form of mekhane (see machine (n.)).
meconic (adj.) Look up meconic at
in reference to an acid obtained from opium, 1819, from Greek mekonikos "of or pertaining to the poppy," from mekon "poppy" (see meconium). Related: Meconine (n.).