Where does “mean” come from?
Mean comes from Middle English menen, from Old French meien, from Latin medianus, from Latin medius, from Latin minae, from Proto-Indo-European ḱóm and men-.
mean (English): To intend
Definitions
- To intend
Ancestry of “mean”, step by step
mean traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Middle English menen
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | menen | to intend, to mean to indicate or signify; to... |
| 2 | Old French | mener | to lead |
| 3 | Latin | minō | to drive or goad (animals) |
| 4 | Latin | mina | A Greek weight equal to 100 drachmas; A Greek... |
| 5 | Gaulish | mēnā | ore, mine |
| 6 | Proto-Celtic | *meinis | ore, metal |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | mēy(H)nis | — |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | (s)mēy(H)- | to cut, hew |
via Middle English mene
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | mene | — |
| 2 | Middle English | imene | mean, base, common; average, lowly, mean |
| 3 | Old English | ġemǣne | common, public, general, universal; common,... |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | gamainī | common; shared, communal |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | gamainiz | shared, communal, public; common, ordinary |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱom-moynis | — |