offensive, selfish, or unaccommodating; nasty; malicious: a mean remark; He gets mean when he doesn't get his way.
2.
small-minded or ignoble: mean motives.
3.
penurious, stingy, or miserly: a person who is mean about money.
4.
inferior in grade, quality, or character: no mean reward.
5.
low in status, rank, or dignity: mean servitors.
6.
of little importance or consequence: mean little details.
7.
unimposing or shabby: a mean abode.
8.
small, humiliated, or ashamed: You should feel mean for being so stingy.
9.
Informal. in poor physical condition.
10.
troublesome or vicious; bad-tempered: a mean old horse.
11.
Slang. skillful or impressive: He blows a mean trumpet.
[Origin: bef. 900; ME mene, aph. var. (see y-) of imene, OE gemǣne; c. D gemeen, G gemein common, Goth gamains in common; cf. common]
—Synonyms 2. contemptible, despicable. Mean,low,base,sordid, and vile all refer to ignoble characteristics worthy of dislike, contempt, or disgust. Mean suggests pettiness and small-mindedness: to take a mean advantage. Low suggests coarseness and vulgarity: low company. Base suggests selfish cowardice or moral depravity: base motives. Sordid suggests a wretched uncleanness, or sometimes an avariciousness without dignity or moral scruples: a sordid slum; sordid gain. Vile suggests disgusting foulness or repulsiveness: vile insinuation; a vile creature. 3. niggardly, close, tight, parsimonious, illiberal, ungenerous, selfish. See stingy.5. common, humble; undignified, plebeian. 6. inconsequential, insignificant, petty, paltry, little, poor, wretched. 7. squalid, poor.
Usually, means.(used with a singular or plural verb) an agency, instrument, or method used to attain an end: The telephone is a means of communication. There are several means of solving the problem.
2.
means,
a.
available resources, esp. money: They lived beyond their means.
b.
considerable financial resources; riches: a man of means.
3.
something that is midway between two extremes; something intermediate: to seek a mean between cynicism and blind faith.
4.
Mathematics.
a.
a quantity having a value intermediate between the values of other quantities; an average, esp. the arithmetic mean.
b.
either the second or third term in a proportion of four terms.
To be used to convey; denote: "'The question is,' said Alice, 'whether you can make words mean so many different things'"(Lewis Carroll).
To act as a symbol of; signify or represent: In this poem, the budding flower means youth.
To intend to convey or indicate: "No one means all he says, and yet very few say all they mean, for words are slippery and thought is viscous"(Henry Adams).
To have as a purpose or an intention; intend: I meant to go running this morning, but I overslept.
To design, intend, or destine for a certain purpose or end: a building that was meant for storage; a student who was meant to be a scientist.
To have as a consequence; bring about: Friction means heat.
To have the importance or value of: The opinions of the critics meant nothing to him. She meant so much to me.
v.
intr.
To have intentions of a specified kind; be disposed: They mean well but lack tact.
[Middle English menen, from Old English mǣnan, to tell of; see mei-no- in Indo-European roots.]
Low in value or amount; paltry: paid no mean amount for the new shoes.
Hard to cope with; difficult or troublesome: He throws a mean fast ball.
Excellent; skillful: She plays a mean game of bridge.
Ignoble; base: a mean motive.
Miserly; stingy.
Low in quality or grade; inferior.
Low in value or amount; paltry: paid no mean amount for the new shoes.
Hard to cope with; difficult or troublesome: He throws a mean fast ball.
Excellent; skillful: She plays a mean game of bridge.
Common or poor in appearance; shabby: "The rowhouses had been darkened by the rain and looked meaner and grimmer than ever"(Anne Tyler).
Low in social status; of humble origins.
Humiliated or ashamed.
In poor physical condition; sick or debilitated.
Extremely unpleasant or disagreeable: The meanest storm in years.
Informal Ill-tempered.
Slang
Hard to cope with; difficult or troublesome: He throws a mean fast ball.
Excellent; skillful: She plays a mean game of bridge.
[Middle English, from Old English gemǣne, common; see mei-1 in Indo-European roots.]
Synonyms: These adjectives mean lacking in dignity or falling short of the standards befitting humans. Mean suggests pettiness, spite, or niggardliness: "Never ascribe to an opponent motives meaner than your own" (J.M. Barrie).
Something low violates standards of morality, ethics, or propriety: low cunning; a low trick. Base suggests a contemptible, mean-spirited, or selfish lack of human decency: "that liberal obedience, without which your army would be a base rabble" (Edmund Burke).
Abject means brought low in condition: abject submission; abject poverty. Ignoble means lacking noble qualities, such as elevated moral character: "For my part I think it a less evil that some criminals should escape than that the government should play an ignoble part" (Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.)
Sordid suggests foul, repulsive degradation: "It is through art . . . that we can shield ourselves from the sordid perils of actual existence" (Oscar Wilde).
Something having a position, quality, or condition midway between extremes; a medium.
Mathematics
A number that typifies a set of numbers, such as a geometric mean or an arithmetic mean.
The average value of a set of numbers.
Money, property, or other wealth: You ought to live within your means.
Great wealth: a woman of means.
Logic The middle term in a syllogism.
means(used with a sing. or pl. verb) A method, a course of action, or an instrument by which an act can be accomplished or an end achieved.
means(used with a pl. verb)
Money, property, or other wealth: You ought to live within your means.
Great wealth: a woman of means.
adj.
Occupying a middle or intermediate position between two extremes.
Intermediate in size, extent, quality, time, or degree; medium.
[Middle English mene, middle, from Old French meien, from Latin mediānus, from medius; see medhyo- in Indo-European roots.]
Usage Note: In the sense of "financial resources" means takes a plural verb: His means are more than adequate. In the sense of "a way to an end," means may be treated as either a singular or plural. It is singular when referring to a particular strategy or method: The best means of securing the cooperation of the builders is to appeal to their self-interest. It is plural when it refers to a group of strategies or methods: The most effective means for dealing with the drug problem have generally been those suggested by the affected communities. · Means is most often followed by of: a means of noise reduction. But for, to, and toward are also used: a means for transmitting sound; a means to an end; a means toward achieving equality.
O.E. mænan "to mean, tell, say, complain," from W.Gmc. *mainijanan (cf. O.Fris. mena, Du. menen, Ger. meinen to think, suppose, be of the opinion"), from PIE *meino- "opinion, intent" (cf. O.C.S. meniti "to think, have an opinion," O.Ir. mian "wish, desire," Welsh mwyn "enjoyment"), probably from base *men- "think." Meaningful first attested 1852.
"low-quality," O.E. gemæne "common, public, general, universal, shared by all," from P.Gmc. *ga-mainiz "possessed jointly" (cf. O.Fris. mene, M.L.G. gemeine, Du. gemeen, Ger. gemein, Goth. gamains "common"), from PIE *ko-moin-i- "held in common," a compound adjective formed from collective prefix *ko- "together" (P.Gmc. *ga-) + *moi-n-, suffixed form of PIE base *mei- "to change, exchange" (see mutable); cf. second element in common, a word whose sense evolution parallels that of mean (adj.). Sense influenced by mean (n.). Meaning "inferior, poor" emerged c.1300; that of "stingy, nasty" first recorded 1665; weaker sense of "disobliging, pettily offensive" is from 1839, originally Amer.Eng. slang. Inverted sense of "remarkably good" (i.e. plays a mean saxophone) first recorded c.1900, also in phrase no mean _______ "not inferior" (1596, also, "not average," reflecting further confusion with mean (n.)). Meanie "cruel person" is from 1927.
"that which is halfway between extremes," 1330, from O.Fr. meien, from L. medianus "of or that is in the middle" (see median). Oldest sense is musical. Sense of "so-so, mediocre" led to confusion with mean (adj.). First record of means "course of action," is c.1380; sense of "wealth" is first recorded 1603. This is the mean in meantime (1340), meanwhile (1464), and by no means (1472).
approximating the statistical norm or average or expected value; "the average income in New England is below that of the nation"; "of average height for his age"; "the mean annual rainfall" [syn: average]
2.
characterized by malice; "a hateful thing to do"; "in a mean mood" [syn: hateful]
3.
having or showing an ignoble lack of honor or morality; "that liberal obedience without which your army would be a base rabble"- Edmund Burke; "taking a mean advantage"; "chok'd with ambition of the meaner sort"- Shakespeare; "something essentially vulgar and meanspirited in politics" [syn: base]
4.
excellent; "famous for a mean backhand"
5.
marked by poverty befitting a beggar; "a beggarly existence in the slums"; "a mean hut" [syn: beggarly]
6.
(used of persons or behavior) characterized by or indicative of lack of generosity; "a mean person"; "he left a miserly tip"
7.
(used of sums of money) so small in amount as to deserve contempt [syn: beggarly]
8.
of no value or worth; "I was caught in the bastardly traffic" [syn: bastardly]
noun
1.
an average of n numbers computed by adding some function of the numbers and dividing by some function of n
verb
1.
mean or intend to express or convey; "You never understand what I mean!"; "what do his words intend?"
2.
have as a logical consequence; "The water shortage means that we have to stop taking long showers" [syn: entail]
3.
denote or connote; "'maison' means 'house' in French"; "An example sentence would show what this word means"
4.
have in mind as a purpose; "I mean no harm"; "I only meant to help you"; "She didn't think to harm me"; "We thought to return early that night" [syn: intend]
5.
have a specified degree of importance; "My ex-husband means nothing to me"; "Happiness means everything"
6.
intend to refer to; "I'm thinking of good food when I talk about France"; "Yes, I meant you when I complained about people who gossip!" [syn: think of]
7.
destine or designate for a certain purpose; "These flowers were meant for you"
A number or quantity having a value that is intermediate between other numbers or quantities, especially an arithmetic mean or average. See more at arithmetic mean.
Either the second or third term of a proportion of four terms. In the proportion 2/3 = 4/6 , the means are 3 and 4. Compare extreme.
In statistics, an average of a group of numbers or data points. With a group of numbers, the mean is obtained by adding them and dividing by the number of numbers in the group. Thus the mean of five, seven, and twelve is eight (twenty-four divided by three). (Comparemedianandmode.)
Am"nes*ty\, n. [L. amnestia, Gr. ?, a forgetting, fr. ? forgotten, forgetful; 'a priv. + ? to remember: cf. F. amnistie, earlier amnestie. See Mean, v.]1. Forgetfulness; cessation of remembrance of wrong; oblivion. 2. An act of the sovereign power granting oblivion, or a general pardon, for a past offense, as to subjects concerned in an insurrection.
Au*tom"a*ton\, n.; pl. L. Automata, E. Automatons. [L. fr. Gr. ?, neut. of ? self-moving; ? self + a root ma, man, to strive, think, cf. ? to strive. See Mean, v. i.]1. Any thing or being regarded as having the power of spontaneous motion or action. --Huxley. So great and admirable an automaton as the world. --Boyle. These living automata, human bodies. --Boyle. 2. A self-moving machine, or one which has its motive power within itself; -- applied chiefly to machines which appear to imitate spontaneously the motions of living beings, such as men, birds, etc.
Base\ (b[=a]s), a. [OE. bass, F. bas, low, fr. LL. bassus thick, fat, short, humble; cf. L. Bassus, a proper name, and W. bas shallow. Cf. Bass a part in music.]1. Of little, or less than the usual, height; of low growth; as, base shrubs. [Archaic] --Shak. 2. Low in place or position. [Obs.] --Shak. 3. Of humble birth; or low degree; lowly; mean. [Archaic] "A pleasant and base swain." --Bacon. 4. Illegitimate by birth; bastard. [Archaic] Why bastard? wherefore base? --Shak. 5. Of little comparative value, as metal inferior to gold and silver, the precious metals. 6. Alloyed with inferior metal; debased; as, base coin; base bullion. 7. Morally low. Hence: Low-minded; unworthy; without dignity of sentiment; ignoble; mean; illiberal; menial; as, a base fellow; base motives; base occupations. "A cruel act of a base and a cowardish mind." --Robynson (More's Utopia). "Base ingratitude." --Milton. 8. Not classical or correct. "Base Latin." --Fuller. 9. Deep or grave in sound; as, the base tone of a violin. [In this sense, commonly written bass.] 10. (Law) Not held by honorable service; as, a base estate, one held by services not honorable; held by villenage. Such a tenure is called base, or low, and the tenant, a base tenant. Base fee, formerly, an estate held at the will of the lord; now, a qualified fee. See note under Fee, n., 4. Base metal. See under Metal. Syn: Dishonorable; worthless; ignoble; low-minded; infamous; sordid; degraded. Usage: Base, Vile, Mean. These words, as expressing moral qualities, are here arranged in the order of their strength, the strongest being placed first. Base marks a high degree of moral turpitude; vile and mean denote, in different degrees, the want of what is valuable or worthy of esteem. What is base excites our abhorrence; what is vile provokes our disgust or indignation; what is mean awakens contempt. Base is opposed to high-minded; vile, to noble; mean, to liberal or generous. Ingratitude is base; sycophancy is vile; undue compliances are mean.
Im*mu"ni*ty\, n.; pl. Immunities. [L. immunitas, fr. immunis free from a public service; pref. im- not + munis complaisant, obliging, cf. munus service, duty: cf. F. immunit['e]. See Common, and cf. Mean, a.]1. Freedom or exemption from any charge, duty, obligation, office, tax, imposition, penalty, or service; a particular privilege; as, the immunities of the free cities of Germany; the immunities of the clergy. 2. Freedom; exemption; as, immunity from error.
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