<B>mean</B> (2), adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>not noble; petty; unkind; small-minded. <BR> <I>Ex. It is mean to spread gossip about others.</I> (SYN) base, contemptible, despicable, ignoble. <DD><B> 2. </B>low in quality or grade; poor. <BR> <I>Ex. the meanest of gifts.</I> <DD><B> 3. </B>low in social position or rank; humble. <BR> <I>Ex. A peasant is of mean birth; a king is of noble birth.</I> (SYN) common, plebeian. <DD><B> 4. </B>of little importance or value. <BR> <I>Ex. the meanest flower. Rightly viewed no meanest object is insignificant (Thomas Carlyle).</I> (SYN) insignificant, paltry, petty. <DD><B> 5. </B>of poor appearance; shabby. <BR> <I>Ex. The poor widow lived in a mean hut.</I> <DD><B> 6. </B>stingy or selfish; closefisted. <BR> <I>Ex. A miser is mean about money.</I> (SYN) miserly. <DD><B> 7. </B>(U.S. Informal.) humiliated; ashamed. <BR> <I>Ex. to feel mean.</I> <DD><B> 8. </B>(U.S. Informal.) <DD><B> a. </B>hard to manage; troublesome; bad-tempered. <BR> <I>Ex. a mean horse.</I> <DD><B> b. </B>selfish and ill-tempered; vicious; cruel. <BR> <I>Ex. Tell me where you hid my hat; don't be so mean!</I> <DD><B> 9a. </B>(Informal.) in poor physical condition; unwell. <BR> <I>Ex. I feel mean today.</I> <DD><B> b. </B>stubborn and annoying. <BR> <I>Ex. a mean cold.</I> <DD><B> 10. </B>(Informal.) that attracts notice, especially because it is done well or one is very good or clever. <BR> <I>Ex. "I bet you play a mean ukulele," she said (Punch). Daddy was a real mean cook when he had something to work with (Louise Meriwether).</I> (SYN) excellent. <BR><I>expr. <B>no mean,</B> </I>very good. <BR> <I>Ex. That scholar is no mean worker, writing several articles a year.</I> </DL>
<A NAME="mean">
<B>mean</B> (3), adjective, noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>adj. </I> <B>1. </B>halfway between two extremes. <BR> <I>Ex. the mean annual air temperature. 6 is the mean number between 3 and 9.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>intermediate in kind, quality, or degree. (SYN) medium, average. <DD><B> 3. </B>(Mathematics.) having a value intermediate between the values of other quantities. <BR> <I>Ex. a mean diameter.</I> <DD><I>noun </I> <B>1. </B>a condition, quality, or course of actionhalfway between two extremes. <BR> <I>Ex. Eight hours is a happy mean between too much sleep and too little.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>(Mathematics.) <DD><B> a. </B>a quantity having a value intermediate between the values of other quantities, especially the average obtained by dividing the sum of all the quantities by the total number of quantities. <BR> <I>Ex. 6 is the mean of 3, 7, and 8.</I> <DD><B> b. </B>either the second or third term of a proportion of four terms. <DD><B> 3. </B>(Logic.) the middle term of a syllogism. <DD><B> 4. </B>See also <B>means.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="meander">
<B>meander, </B>verb, noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>v.i. </I> <B>1. </B>to follow a winding course. <BR> <I>Ex. A brook meanders through the meadow.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>(Figurative.) to wander aimlessly. <BR> <I>Ex. We meandered through the park. Paris is built for meandering, and for getting lost (John O'Hara).</I> (SYN) ramble, saunter. <DD><I>v.t. </I> to make (one's way) or follow (a course) by meandering. <DD><I>noun </I> <B>1. </B>an aimless wandering. <BR> <I>Ex. After the sun got so hot, the hike turned into a meander along the edge of a stream.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>a winding course or path. <BR> <I>Ex. the meanders of the law (John Arbuthnot).</I> <DD><B> 3. </B>an intricate variety of fret or fretwork. <DD><B> 4. </B>a looplike, winding turn in a river or stream. adv. <B>meanderingly.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="meandeviation">
<B>mean deviation,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> (Statistics.) a measure of dispersion obtained by taking the average of the absolute values of the differences between individual numbers or scores and their mean. </DL>
<A NAME="meandistance">
<B>mean distance,</B><DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>the average of the distances of the aphelion and perihelion of a planet from the sun, one of the data necessary to determine the orbit of a planet. <BR> <I>Ex. The earth's mean distance from the sun is about 92,900,000 miles (Robert H. Baker).</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>the average of the greatest and least distances of any heavenly body, such as a star or a satellite, from the focus of its orbit. </DL>
<A NAME="meandrous">
<B>meandrous, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> meandering; winding. <BR> <I>Ex. (Figurative.) an introspective, meandrous excursion through his own mind (New Yorker).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="meanfreepath">
<B>mean free path,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> the average distance a molecule of a gas or other substance can travel before it collides with another molecule. The distance will vary according to altitude in the case of a gas. <BR> <I>Ex. In a gas the mean free path may be as large as a few hundred angstroms, or much larger than the size of the atom itself (Scientific American).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="meaning">
<B>meaning, </B>noun, adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>noun </I> <B>1. </B>that which is meant or intended; significance. <BR> <I>Ex. the meaning of a story, the meaning of a sermon. The meaning of that sentence is clear.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>(Archaic.) intention or purpose. <BR> <I>Ex. I am no honest man if there by any good meaning towards you (Shakespeare).</I> <DD><I>adj. </I> <B>1. </B>that means something; expressive; significant. <BR> <I>Ex. a meaning look.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>having purpose; intending. <BR> <I>Ex. well meaning.</I> adv. <B>meaningly.</B> noun <B>meaningness.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="meaningful">
<B>meaningful, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> full of meaning; having much meaning; significant. <BR> <I>Ex. History must be made more meaningful to the individual (New York Times).</I> adv. <B>meaningfully.</B> noun <B>meaningfulness.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="meaningless">
<B>meaningless, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> without meaning; not making sense; not significant. <BR> <I>Ex. Words such as "purpose" are ... scientifically meaningless (Science News).</I> (SYN) senseless, insignificant. adv. <B>meaninglessly.</B> noun <B>meaninglessness.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="meanly">
<B>meanly, </B>adverb.<DL COMPACT><DD> in a mean manner; poorly, basely, or stingily. </DL>
<A NAME="meanness">
<B>meanness, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>the fact or state of being mean in grade or quality; poorness. <DD><B> 2. </B>the fact or state of being selfish in small things; stinginess. <DD><B> 3. </B>a mean act. </DL>
<A NAME="meannoon">
<B>mean noon,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> the time when the mean sun is on the meridian of the observer. </DL>
<A NAME="meanproportional">
<B>mean proportional,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> (Mathematics.) the means in a proportion when they are equal. (Example:) In a:b = b:c, b is the mean proportional. </DL>
<A NAME="means">
<B>means, </B>noun pl.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>what something is done by or the way something is brought about; agency; method. <BR> <I>Ex. We won the game by fair means. His quick thinking was the means of saving her life. There are no means that I will not resort to, to discover this infamous plot (Frederick Marryat).</I> (SYN) device, instrumentality, expedient, shift, way. <DD><B> 2. </B>wealth; resources. <BR> <I>Ex. a man of means, to live beyond one's means.</I> (SYN) funds, income, property. <BR><I>expr. <B>by all means,</B> </I>certainly; in any possible way; without fail. <BR> <I>Ex. By all means I must visit my sick friend. I must by all means keep this feast (Acts 18:21).</I> <BR><I>expr. <B>by any means,</B> </I>at all; in any possible way; at any cost. <BR> <I>Ex. None of them can by any means redeem his brother (Psalms 49:7).</I> <BR><I>expr. <B>by means of,</B> </I>by the use of; through; with. <BR> <I>Ex. I found my lost dog by means of a notice in the paper.</I> <BR><I>expr. <B>by no means,</B> </I>certainly not; not at all; in no way. <BR> <I>Ex. Mother by no means shared our idea of spending all afternoon looking at television. But her other uncle by no means shared her sentiments (Lytton Strachey).</I> <BR><I>expr. <B>means to an end,</B> </I>a way of getting or doing something. <BR> <I>Ex. Thisjob is only a means to an end for him; he needs the experience to start his own business.</I> </DL>
<A NAME="meansolarday">
<B>mean solar day,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> a day of twenty-four hours, measured from midnight to midnight; civil day. </DL>
<A NAME="meansolartime">
<B>mean solar time,</B> =mean time.</DL>
<A NAME="meanspirited">
<B>mean-spirited, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> having a mean spirit; small-minded. <BR> <I>Ex. Only a very mean-spirited reader would grudge the price of these victories (Listener).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="meanstest">
<B>means test,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> (British.) an examination of a person's financial resources to determine whether he is eligible for financial assistance, such as a scholarship, welfare support, or the like. </DL>
<A NAME="meanstest">
<B>means-test, </B>transitive verb.<DL COMPACT><DD> (British.) to subject to a means test. <BR> <I>Ex. Anyone who qualifies for free welfare milk will not have to be separately means-tested for ophthalmic or dental treatment or for free prescription charges (Manchester Guardian Weekly).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="meansun">
<B>mean sun,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> a hypothetical sun in various astronomical calculations that moves uniformly along the celestial equator at the mean speed with which the real sun apparently moves along the ecliptic. </DL>
<A NAME="meant">
<B>meant, </B>verb.<DL COMPACT><DD> past tense and past participle of <B>mean</B> (1). <BR> <I>Ex. He explained what he meant. That sign was meant as a warning.</I> </DL>
<A NAME="meantime">
<B>meantime, </B>noun, adverb.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>noun </I> the time between. (SYN) interim, interval. <DD><I>adv. </I> <B>1. </B>in the time between. <DD><B> 2. </B>at the same time. </DL>
<A NAME="meantime">
<B>mean time,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> time according to the hour angle of the mean sun, constituting the "ordinary time" or "clock time" of daily life. </DL>
<A NAME="meanwhile">
<B>meanwhile, </B>noun, adverb. =meantime.</DL>
<A NAME="mearns">
<B>Mearns'</B> or <B>Mearns's quail,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> a small quail of the southwestern United States and Mexico having a multicolored face and no crest. </DL>
