Mean

English

Pronunciation

• Template:EnPR, Template:IPA
• Template:IPA
• Template:Audio
• Template:Homophones
• Template:Rhymes

Etymology 1

From Template:Inh, from Template:Inh, Template:Inh, from Template:Inh, from Template:Der, or perhaps from Template:Der, extended form of Template:Der.

Germanic cognates include Template:Cog (Template:Cog), Template:Cog (Template:Cog), Template:Cog, Template:Cog. Indo-European cognates include Template:Cog and Template:Cog. Non-Indo-European cognates include Template:Cog, Template:Cog Template:Cog, Template:Cog. Related to Template:M.

Verb

1. To intend.
   1. Template:Lb To intend, to plan (to do); to have as one's intention. Template:Defdate

      Template:Ux

      Template:Ux

      Template:Ux

      Template:Ux

      • Template:RQ:Marlowe Tamburlaine
   2. Template:Lb To have as intentions of a given kind. Template:Defdate

      Template:Ux

   3. Template:Lb To intend (something) for a given purpose or fate; to predestine. Template:Defdate

      Template:Ux

      Template:Ux

   4. Template:Lb To intend an ensuing comment or statement as an explanation.

      Template:Ux

2. To convey (a meaning).
   1. Template:Lb To convey (a given sense); to signify, or indicate (an object or idea). Template:Defdate

      Template:Ux

      • Template:Quote-book
      • Template:Quote-journal
   2. Template:Lb Of a word, symbol etc: to have reference to, to signify. Template:Defdate

      Template:Ux

      • Template:Quote-book
   3. Template:Lb Of a person (or animal etc): to intend to express, to imply, to hint at, to allude.

      Template:Ux

      Template:Ux

3. Template:Lb To have conviction in (something said or expressed); to be sincere in (what one says). Template:Defdate

   Template:Ux

   Template:Ux

4. Template:Lb To cause or produce (a given result); to bring about (a given result). Template:Defdate

   Template:Ux

   • Template:Quote-journal
   • Template:Quote-journal
5. Template:Lb To be of some level of importance.

   Template:Ux

   Template:Ux

6. Template:Lb To lament.

   Template:Syn

   • Template:Quote-text
   • 1560 (1677), Spottiswood Hist. Ch. Scot. iii. (1677), page 144:

     They were forced to mean our estate to the Queen of England.

   • Template:Quote-book
   • Template:Quote-text

Synonyms

• Template:Sense convey, indicate, signify
• Template:Sense imply, mean to say
• Template:Sense intend
• Template:Sense be serious
• Template:Sense
• Template:Sense bring about, cause, lead to, result in

Translations

• Bulgarian: Template:T+
• Catalan: Template:T+
• Cherokee: Template:T
• Czech: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Dutch: Template:T+, Template:T
• Esperanto: Template:T
• Finnish: Template:T+
• French: Template:T , Template:T
• Galician: Template:T+
• German: Template:T+
• Hebrew: Template:T
• Hindi: Template:T+
• Hungarian: Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T
• Icelandic: Template:T+
• Italian: Template:T+, Template:T, Template:T, Template:T+
• Japanese: Template:T+, Template:T
• Korean: Template:T+
• Latin: Template:T+, Template:T
• Macedonian: Template:T
• Old English: Template:T, Template:T+
• Polish: Template:T+
• Portuguese: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Romanian: Template:T+, Template:T, Template:T+
• Russian: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Spanish: Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T
• Swedish: Template:T+
• Tagalog: Template:T, Template:T, Template:T
• Telugu: Template:T, Template:T
• Thai: Template:T+
• Turkish: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Ukrainian: Template:T
• Walloon: Template:T+

• Bulgarian: Template:T
• Dutch: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Esperanto: Template:T
• Finnish: Template:T+
• Galician: Template:T+
• Hebrew: Template:T
• Hindi: Template:T+
• Hungarian: Template:T+
• Icelandic: Template:T, Template:T+
• Italian: Template:T+
• Japanese: Template:T+, Template:T
• Korean: Template:T+
• Polish: Template:T+
• Portuguese: Template:T+
• Russian: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Spanish: Template:T+
• Swedish: Template:T+
• Telugu: Template:T
• Turkish: Template:T+
• Ukrainian: Template:T

• Dutch: Template:T+
• Finnish: Template:T+
• Hebrew: Template:T+
• Hindi: Template:T+
• Hungarian: Template:T+
• Italian: Template:T
• Russian: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Spanish: Template:T+
• Tagalog: Template:T

• Arabic: Template:T
• Azerbaijani: Template:T+, Template:T
• Belarusian: Template:T, Template:T
• Bulgarian: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Catalan: Template:T+
• Chickasaw: Template:T
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: Template:T+, Template:T

• Czech: Template:T+
• Danish: Template:T+
• Dutch: Template:T+, Template:T, Template:T+
• Esperanto: Template:T, Template:T
• Estonian: Template:T
• Finnish: Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T+
• French: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Galician: Template:T, Template:T+
• German: Template:T+
• Greek: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Hebrew: Template:T+
• Hindi: Template:T+
• Hungarian: Template:T+
• Icelandic: Template:T, Template:T+
• Italian: Template:T+, Template:T
• Japanese: Template:T+
• Khmer: Template:T, Template:T
• Korean: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Lao: Template:T, Template:T, Template:T
• Latin: Template:T, Template:T
• Latvian: Template:T
• Lithuanian: Template:T
• Macedonian: Template:T
• Mongolian: Template:T-needed
• Ngazidja Comorian: Template:T
• Norwegian: Template:T+

  Bokmål: Template:T

  Nynorsk: Template:T, Template:T

• Old English: Template:T, Template:T
• Persian: Template:T
• Polish: Template:T+
• Portuguese: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Romanian: Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T+
• Russian: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Scottish Gaelic: Template:T
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: Template:T

  Roman: Template:T+

• Slovak: Template:T
• Slovene: Template:T
• Spanish: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Swedish: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Tagalog: Template:T
• Tajik: Template:T, Template:T
• Telugu: Template:T
• Thai: Template:T, Template:T+
• Turkish: Template:T, Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T, Template:T+
• Ukrainian: Template:T+, Template:T
• Vietnamese: Template:T+
• Welsh: Template:T+

• Albanian: Template:T-needed
• Arabic: Template:T, Template:T
• Armenian: Template:T-needed
• Basque: Template:T, Template:T
• Bulgarian: Template:T+
• Catalan: Template:T, Template:T+
• Chickasaw: Template:T
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: Template:T

• Czech: Template:T+
• Danish: Template:T
• Dutch: Template:T+, Template:T, Template:T+
• Esperanto: Template:T
• Finnish: Template:T+, Template:T+
• French: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Galician: Template:T, Template:T+
• Georgian: Template:T-needed
• German: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Greek: Template:T+

  Ancient: Template:T

• Hebrew: Template:T
• Hindi: Template:T+
• Hungarian: Template:T+
• Icelandic: Template:T, Template:T+
• Ingrian: Template:T, Template:T
• Interlingua: Template:T
• Italian: Template:T, Template:T+
• Japanese: Template:T+
• Khmer: Template:T, Template:T, Template:T
• Korean: Template:T+
• Lao: Template:T-needed
• Latin: Template:T
• Lithuanian: Template:T
• Occitan: Template:T+
• Old English: Template:T, Template:T
• Polish: Template:T+
• Portuguese: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Romanian: Template:T, Template:T+
• Russian: Template:T+
• Spanish: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Swedish: Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T
• Tagalog: Template:T, Template:T
• Telugu: Template:T+
• Thai: Template:T
• Turkish: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Ukrainian: Template:T+
• Vietnamese: Template:T
• Walloon: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Welsh: Template:T+
• Yiddish: Template:T

• Finnish: Template:T+
• French: Template:T+
• Greek: Template:T+
• Hebrew: Template:T
• Hungarian: Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T+
• Italian: Template:T+
• Polish: Template:T+
• Spanish: Template:T, Template:T+, Template:T+ Template:Q

• Azerbaijani: Template:T
• Catalan: Template:T
• Dutch: Template:T+
• Finnish: Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T+ Template:Qualifier
• German: Template:T+
• Hebrew: Template:T
• Hungarian: Template:T
• Italian: Template:T+
• Japanese: Template:T+
• Korean: Template:T+
• Old English: Template:T
• Portuguese: Template:T
• Romanian: Template:T
• Russian: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Spanish: Template:T
• Swedish: Template:T+
• Turkish: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Ukrainian: Template:T+, Template:T+

• Dutch: Template:T+
• Esperanto: Template:T
• Finnish: Template:T+, Template:T+
• German: Template:T+
• Hungarian: Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T+
• Italian: Template:T, Template:T+, Template:T+
• Japanese: Template:T+
• Korean: Template:T
• Portuguese: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Russian: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Spanish: Template:T, Template:T+
• Swedish: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Turkish: Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T+
• Ukrainian: Template:T, Template:T+

• Catalan: Template:T+
• Dutch: Template:T+
• Finnish: Template:T+
• Hebrew: Template:T+
• Hungarian: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Italian: Template:T

• Finnish: Template:T+
• Italian: Template:T+
• Portuguese: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Spanish: Template:T+, Template:T+

• Portuguese: Template:T, Template:T
• Spanish: Template:T+, Template:T+

• Spanish: Template:T+, Template:T+

• Ido: Template:T+check
• Indonesian: Template:T+check , Template:T+check , Template:T+check , Template:T+check
• Interlingua: Template:Qualifier Template:T-check, Template:Qualifier Template:T-check, Template:T-check, Template:Qualifier Template:T-check , Template:Qualifier Template:T-check

Etymology 2

Template:Root From Template:Inh, Template:M, from Template:Inh, Template:M, from Template:Inh, from Template:Inh, from Template:Der. Template:Doublet.

Cognate with Template:Cog, Template:Cog, Template:Cog, Template:Cog, Template:Cog, Template:Cog (Template:Cog).

Adjective

1. Template:Lb Common; general.
2. Template:Lb Of a common or low origin, grade, or quality; common; humble.

   Template:Ux

   Template:Ux

   • Template:RQ:Marlowe Tamburlaine
   • Template:RQ:Gibbon Roman Empire
   • Template:Quote-song
3. Low in quality or degree; inferior; poor; shabby.

   Template:Syn

   Template:Ux

   Template:Ux

4. Without dignity of mind; destitute of honour; low-minded; spiritless; base.

   Template:Syn

   Template:Ant

   Template:Ux

   Template:Ux

   • Template:RQ:Dryden Indian Emperour
   • Template:Quote-av
   • Template:RQ:Allingham China Governess
5. Of little value or worth; worthy of little or no regard; contemptible; despicable.
   • Template:RQ:Philips Cyder
6. Template:Lb Ungenerous; stingy; tight-fisted.

   Template:Syn

   Template:Ux

7. Disobliging; pettily offensive or unaccommodating.
8. Intending to cause harm, successfully or otherwise; bearing ill will towards another.

   Template:Syn

   Template:Ux

9. Powerful; fierce; strong.

   Template:Syn

   Template:Ux

   • Template:Quote-av
10. Template:Lb Hearty; spicy.
    • Template:Quote-book
    • Template:Quote-book
11. Template:Lb Accomplished with great skill; deft; hard to compete with.

    Template:Syn

    Template:Ux

    Template:Ux

    • Template:Quote-journal
12. Template:Lb Difficult, tricky.

    Template:Ux

Translations

• Arabic: Template:T, Template:T+
• Basque: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Bulgarian: Template:T+
• Dutch: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Esperanto: Template:T, Template:T
• Finnish: Template:T+
• French: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Gallurese: Template:T, Template:T
• Georgian: Template:T-needed
• German: Template:T+
• Greek: Template:T+
• Italian: Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T+
• Japanese: Template:T+
• Korean: Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T, Template:T+
• Kurdish:

  Central Kurdish: Template:T

• Luxembourgish: Template:T
• Portuguese: Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T+
• Russian: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Spanish: Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T+
• Swedish: Template:T+
• Tagalog: Template:T, Template:T
• Telugu: Template:T

• Catalan: Template:T+
• Danish: Template:T+
• Finnish: Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T+
• Galician: Template:T
• Hebrew: Template:T+
• Irish: Template:T, Template:T, Template:T, Template:T
• Italian: Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T+
• Ottoman Turkish: Template:T, Template:T
• Persian: Template:T
• Portuguese: Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T+
• Russian: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Sardinian:

  Campidanese: Template:T, Template:T, Template:T, Template:T

  Logudorese: Template:T, Template:T, Template:T, Template:T, Template:T

• Sassarese: Template:T, Template:T, Template:T
• Spanish: Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T Template:Q
• Tagalog: Template:T
• Turkish: Template:T+

• Bulgarian: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: Template:T+

• Dutch: Template:T+
• Esperanto: Template:T, Template:T
• Finnish: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Galician: Template:T, Template:T
• Georgian: Template:T-needed
• German: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Greek: Template:T+
• Irish: Template:T
• Italian: Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T+
• Japanese: Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T+
• Korean: Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T, Template:T+
• Kurdish:

  Central Kurdish: Template:T

• Latvian: Template:T, Template:T
• Portuguese: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Russian: Template:T+
• Spanish: Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T Template:Qualifier, Template:T Template:Q
• Swedish: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Tagalog: Template:T, Template:T
• Telugu: Template:T

• Dutch: Template:T+
• Finnish: Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T+
• Greek: Template:T+
• Italian: Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T+
• Japanese: Template:T+
• Korean: Template:T+
• Portuguese: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Russian: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Spanish: Template:T+
• Telugu: Template:T, Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T+

• Bulgarian: Template:T+
• Dutch: Template:T+
• Esperanto: Template:T
• Finnish: Template:T+, Template:T+
• French: Template:T+, Template:T+
• German: Template:T+
• Greek: Template:T+
• Italian: Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T+
• Japanese: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Korean: Template:T+, Template:T
• Portuguese: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Russian: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Spanish: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Tagalog: Template:T, Template:T
• Telugu: Template:T

• Finnish: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Italian: Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T+
• Portuguese: Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T+
• Russian: Template:T+ Template:Qualifier, Template:T+
• Spanish: Template:T+
• Telugu: Template:T

• Indonesian: Template:T-check, Template:T+check, Template:T+check Template:Attention, Template:T+check
• Interlingua: Template:T-check, Template:T-check, Template:Qualifier Template:T-check, Template:Qualifier Template:T-check, Template:T-check, Template:Qualifier Template:T-check
• Scottish Gaelic: Template:T-check

Etymology 3

Template:Etymid From Template:Inh, borrowed from Template:Der (Template:Cog), Template:Cog, from Template:Der. Cognate with Template:M. For the musical sense, compare the cognate Template:Cog. Template:Doublet.

Alternative forms

• Template:Alter

Adjective

1. Having the mean (see noun below) as its value; average.

   Template:Ux

   • Template:Quote-journal
2. Template:Lb Middling; intermediate; moderately good, tolerable.
   • Template:RQ:Burton Melancholy, II.ii.2:

     I have declared in the causes what harm costiveness hath done in procuring this disease; if it be so noxious, the opposite must needs be good, or mean at least, as indeed it is […].

   • Template:RQ:Sidney Arcadia
   • Template:RQ:Milton Of Education

Translations

• Armenian: Template:T+
• Belarusian: Template:T+
• Bulgarian: Template:T+
• Catalan: Template:T+
• Czech: Template:T+
• Dutch: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Esperanto: Template:T
• Finnish: Template:T+
• French: Template:T+
• German: Template:T
• Greek: Template:T+
• Hebrew: Template:T+
• Interlingua: Template:T
• Italian: Template:T+
• Japanese: Template:T+, Template:T
• Korean: Template:T
• Macedonian: Template:T
• Mazanderani: Template:T
• Polish: Template:T+
• Portuguese: Template:T+
• Romanian: Template:T+
• Russian: Template:T+
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: Template:T

  Roman: Template:T+

• Slovak: Template:T+
• Slovene: Template:T+
• Spanish: Template:T+
• Swedish: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Tagalog: Template:T, Template:T
• Ukrainian: Template:T
• Welsh: Template:T

• Bulgarian: Template:T+
• Finnish: Template:T+
• Portuguese: Template:T+

Noun

1. Template:Lb A method or course of action used to achieve some result. Template:Defdate
   • Template:RQ:Montaigne Florio Essayes
   • Template:Quote-text
   • Template:Quote-text
   • Template:Quote-journal
2. Template:Lb An intermediate step or intermediate steps.
   • a. 1563, Thomas Harding, "To the Reader", in The Works of John Jewel (1845 ed.)

     Verily in this treatise this hath been mine only purpose; and the mean to bring the same to effect hath been such as whereby I studied to profit wholesomely, not to please delicately.

   • Template:Quote-text
   • a. 1623, John Webster, The Duchess of Malfi

     Apply desperate physic: / We must not now use balsamum, but fire, / The smarting cupping-glass, for that's the mean / To purge infected blood, such blood as hers.

3. Something which is intermediate or in the middle; an intermediate value or range of values; a medium. Template:Defdate
   • Template:Quote-book
   • Template:Quote-book
   • 1875, William Smith and Samuel Cheetham, editors, A Dictionary of Christian Antiquities, Little, Brown and Company, volume 1, page 10, s.v. Accentus Ecclesiasticus,

     It presents a sort of mean between speech and song, continually inclining towards the latter, never altogether leaving its hold on the former; it is speech, though always attuned speech, in passages of average interest and importance; it is song, though always distinct and articulate song, in passages demanding more fervid utterance.

4. Template:Lb The middle part of three-part polyphonic music; now specifically, the alto part in polyphonic music; an alto instrument. Template:Defdate
   • Template:Quote-book
5. Template:Lb The average of a set of values, calculated by summing them together and dividing by the number of terms; the arithmetic mean. Template:Defdate
6. Template:Lb Any function of multiple variables that satisfies certain properties and yields a number representative of its arguments; or, the number so yielded; a measure of central tendency.
   • 1997, Template:W, The Analysis of Household Surveys: A Microeconometric Approach to Development Policy,^[1] World Bank Publications, Template:ISBN, page 51:

     Note that (1.41) is simply the probability-weighted mean without any explicit allowance for the stratification; each observation is weighted by its inflation factor and the total divided by the total of the inflation factors for the survey.

   • Template:Quote-book
   • Template:Quote-book
7. Template:Lb Either of the two numbers in the middle of a conventionally presented proportion, as 2 and 3 in 1:2=3:6.
   • Template:Quote-text
   • Template:Quote-book
   • Template:Quote-book

Hypernyms

• Template:Sense measure of central tendency, measure of location, sample statistic

Coordinate terms

• Template:Sense median, mode

Translations

• Bulgarian: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Czech: Template:T+
• Danish: Template:T+
• Dutch: Template:T+
• Esperanto: Template:T+
• Finnish: Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T+
• French: Template:T+
• German: Template:T+
• Hebrew: Template:T+
• Interlingua: Template:T, Template:T
• Italian: Template:T+
• Khmer: Template:T+
• Korean: Template:T+
• Portuguese: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Russian: Template:T+
• Scottish Gaelic: Template:T
• Spanish: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Tagalog: Template:T
• Telugu: Template:T
• Turkish: Template:T+

• Bulgarian: Template:T
• Finnish: Template:T
• Persian: Template:T+
• Portuguese: Template:T+, Template:T+

• Bulgarian: Template:T
• Dutch: Template:T+
• Finnish: Template:T+, Template:T+
• French: Template:T+
• German: Template:T+
• Greek:

  Ancient Greek: Template:T

• Indonesian: Template:T+
• Interlingua: Template:T
• Italian: Template:T+
• Japanese: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Korean: Template:T+, Template:T, Template:T
• Maori: Template:T
• Portuguese: Template:T+
• Romanian: Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T+
• Scottish Gaelic: Template:T, Template:T, Template:T
• Spanish: Template:T+
• Swedish: Template:T+, Template:T+
• Tagalog: Template:T, Template:T

• Finnish: Template:T+
• Portuguese: Template:T+

• Bulgarian: Template:T
• Catalan: Template:T+
• Czech: Template:T
• Finnish: Template:T+
• French: Template:T+
• Icelandic: Template:T, Template:T, Template:T
• Indonesian: Template:T+, Template:T+, Template:T, Template:T
• Italian: Template:T+
• Korean: Template:T+
• Malay: Template:T+
• Maori: Template:T
• Mongolian: Template:T+
• Portuguese: Template:T+
• Romanian: Template:T+
• Russian: Template:T+
• Scottish Gaelic: Template:T, Template:T, Template:T
• Spanish: Template:T+
• Tagalog: Template:T
• Ukrainian: Template:T

• Arabic: Template:T
• Finnish: Template:T+
• French: Template:T+
• Greek: Template:T
• Icelandic: Template:T
• Italian: Template:T+
• Maori: Template:T, Template:T
• Portuguese: Template:T+
• Russian: Template:T+
• Scottish Gaelic: Template:T, Template:T, Template:T
• Spanish: Template:T+

• Finnish: Template:T
• Icelandic: Template:T+, Template:T
• Italian: Template:T+

See also

• Template:Sense spread, range

Further reading

• Template:R:OneLook
• Template:R:Century 1911

Anagrams

• Template:Anagrams

Chinese

Etymology

From Template:Bor.

Adjective

1. Template:Lb mean Template:Gl

Verb

1. Template:Lb to be mean towards someone

Manx

Etymology

From Template:Inh, from Template:Der.

Pronunciation

• Template:IPA

Noun

1. centre, middle

   Template:Ux

2. interior

   Template:Ux

3. average

   Template:Ux

Derived terms

• Template:L
• Template:L

Scottish Gaelic

Etymology

From Template:Inh, from a Template:Inh derivation of the root Template:M. Cognate with Template:Cog, Template:M, Template:M and Template:Cog.

Pronunciation

• Template:IPA

Adjective

1. little, tiny

Synonyms

• Template:L
• Template:L
• Template:L
• Template:L

Derived terms

• Template:L

Spanish

Verb

1. Template:Es-verb form of

Tetum

Etymology

From Template:Inh, compare Template:Cog.

Adjective

1. red