n (see
Thurn. Hdb. 179
) f. n
s.
mét,
Ml. 64d7
,
87d9
etc. (usual O.Ir. form).
méit,
Wb. 19d23
, cf.
14a3
,
Sg. 30a10
.
a
d
s. méit. g
s.
inna méite
,
Sg. 151a5
. In later Mid.Ir. and
Mod.Ir. also with non-palatal final & somet. masc. méid f.,
IGT Dec. § 14.17
. méd (lethan), m. g
s. méid,
méda,
§ 38.11
.
Greatness, magnitude (of size, quantity, number, extent,
degree); somet. inabsol. sense oppd. to smallness, but more
commonly indef. denoting size, etc., in general whether great
or small. méit, gl. magnitudo,
Ir. Gl. 922.
ar meit (magnitudine),
Ml. 48c10
. ho meit (mole),
81b4
. huan méit (granditate),
122a13
. inna méite (quantitatis),
Sg. 151a5
. hi meit ┐ lagait
in greatness and smallness,
26a11
.
delb mesarda iter mét ┐
laigit,
PH 1968.
fon lámthorad méit loighet whether great or
small,
Cáin Ad. § 53
(advbl.).
is i a meid .i. mor ┐ beg,
Auraic.
676.
I As subst.,
(a) of amount, extent, degree, folld. by part.
gen. or DE:
co rofessed méit for serce,
Wb. 14d16
.
mét ┐
trummae ind rucae,
Ml. 87d9
.
ar meit in gníma,
48c10
.
iar
mét a pectha,
77a7
.
is dirím méit trocaire Dé,
PH 6474.
for
mét a phéne,
LB 154b6
.
co méit noíbe,
Fél. Prol. 6.
co mét
ṁbuafaid,
TBC-LL¹ 3092.
figlem, lēgem . . . cach i mmeit a neirt
each according to his strength,
ACL iii 314.7
.
re ro-met a
n-itad,
Cog. 52.15
. co ngloir ┐ anoir na meti-sea (= cum
tanto honore et gloria),
PH 4477
, cf.
4485
. Méit menman
high
spirit, pride
(see 1 menma):
leag seol do mhéada menma,
P. Bocht 96 § 2
. In alleg. npr.: mac Genna maic Cuitbiudha
maic Meite-nach-modh (i.e.
excessive greatness or arrogance?),
Anecd. ii 57.2
.
(b) of physical size or stature:
íar méit chorpdai,
LU 2558
(
RC xxv 238 § 9
). ni ra bi la Ultu láth gaile rosassad leth
méite fair who could come up to half his size,
FB 91.
i cionn
a sé mbliadan déc | do ba lór don mhac a mhét,
SG 65.3
.
ro
sháraigh na uili macu ar mét,
RC x 188.3
. ra gabastar muad-chloich méti clochi mulind of the size of a millstone,
TBC-LL¹ 3728.
ingantach leo a roi-mhēd (of a fish),
Fl. Earls 64.26
. g
s. as
attrib.: coica ech dergdond sith-méti
of great length and size(?),
TFerbe 10
. sluag . . . scíthméite (i.e. so big that it would tire
one to count),
Metr. Dinds. iii 256.
(c) of number:
la mméit inna n-imned,
Ml. 95b13
. co méit
míle many thousands,
Fél. Mar. 17.
ba he met in chomthinoil
. . . da espuc dec ar tri cetaib,
PH 573.
rambia fot sáegail ┐
mmed clainne,
Ériu ii 210.15
.
ni fuil airim ara med do cleirchib,
RC xviii 30.33
.
(d) exceptionally in concrete sense:
cid ara ndernsat Greic
in met romor ut int ech,
Aen. 462
(= molem hanc immanis
equi,
Aeneid ii 150
). Cf. fer meite coimse `of small means',
Laws iv 352.18 Comm.
ropo ruiri co ro-méit,
LL 127a51
`with exceeding greatness',
MacCarthy 154 § 1
).
(e) common in chevilles:
met cath,
SR 7235.
met gal,
1507
.
met rath,
7325
.
méit búadae,
Fél. Jan. 16.
méd n-amm,
Metr. Dinds. iii 198.
mét snúad,
ii 68
.
met n-anḟis,
Ériu iv
92 § 5.
mét barc,
LL 8b22
=
med mbarc,
BB 31a53
.
(f) cia m.¤?
how much (many)?
cia mmeit (gl. quanta),
Ml.
25c4
, (quantum),
26a10
. ce mét aimmser
how many times
,
Sg.
25b16
.
ni fetar a rím . . . ca med ros-ordaig Dia pian adbul,
PH 7329.
ní idir mé gá méad lá,
Dán Dé xxii 7.
gá mhéd uair
doríne an ghoid
how often
,
Mac Aingil 176.19
. cá mhéad ní-sa
mhó ná sin
how much more
,
Proverbs xi 31.
II In various stereotyped or idiomatic phrases:
(a) is í
(é, ed) mét, with gen.
such is the greatness (amount, etc.) of:
issí inso méit inna failte,
Wb. 19d23
. hisí mét a suidigthe (gl.
adeo),
Thes. ii 11.40
(
BCr. 18b9
).
ba he mét a n-omain co na
boi oen-duine díb cen cretem,
PH 2481.
ba he med na
dochraidi co mba hecin etc.,
RC xxiv 190 § 1.
Similarly:
isid
méit,
Sg. 30a10
. is heid méit, ib.
14
(both gl. quantus).
(b) ní ed a m.¤
(folld. by subord. clause)
not only
, used in
Glosses to transl. Lat. non tantum (solum): ni ed a met
demnigmi-ni ar ndligeda not only do we confirm our sayings,
Ml. 35b1
. ní ed a m.¤ nad [anad MS.] robae etugud Dǽ desom
not only was there no jealousy,
32d10
.
ní ed a m.¤ foilsigther ind
inne,
Sg. 211a10
.
(c) atá de méit (with gen.)
so great (much) is
. . .: roboi du
meit a pecthae-som combu uisse a n-epeltu so great were their
sins,
Ml. 98c6
. ata do meid a sherce agum co mud duthracht
lim feis les so much do I love him,
Aen. 679.
biaid do met a
fergi so great will his anger be,
Cog. 94.11
. bá dethbir són ém
ce robaí do mét in chotulta boí do mét na athscísi it was
natural that the length of (his) sleep should be proportioned to
(his) fatigue,
TBC-I¹ 1820
=
TBC-LL¹ 2471
, where the construction
is confused. ata do met is luigtech in dobriathar so weak is the
adverb,
Auraic. 4232.
With poss. pron.:
ferais tromṡnechta
. . . ┐ baí da mét co roiched co formnaib fer,
TBC-LL¹ 625.
atá
dha mhét d'ulc dorónais . . . nach saílim, etc. thou hast done
so much harm,
Acall. 3563.
(d) is méite
it is much, it is of moment
(= Lat. rei interest)?
with neg. ní m.¤
it is no great matter; it is not surprising
?
ni
meite bid machdad forgare forru,
Sg. 161b12
; `not so very
wonderful would be command to them' edd. Thes.
ni méte
dúibsi ni coitsi[d] frinni,
Wb. 17b32
(context obscure, prob.
corrupt).
ní méti do-som an déicsin andiaráid sin,
BDD 109
(for suggested emendations of both passages see
Ériu x 191
).
is méite lim(m)
I deem it much, of importance; I desire? ba
méite limm ni scartha friumm I would fain thou hadst not
parted from me (? gl. desiderans te videre),
Wb. 29d8
. másu
oénadaig . . . fesi dam-sæ la Líadain, | méti la láech nod-fiad |
ind adaig ní archriad a layman who would spend the night
(with L.) would be fain that it did not wear out (?),
Liad. and Cuir. 20.6
. meti [lim] ni badam beó | d'ingnais rig Maige
da cheo I had rather not live without,
LL 276a41
.
meite lais na
raitéd in talmain amail sige séig,
MS. Mat. 473.4
=
meti les no raited in trogain sín sighi se[i]g `he sped over the earth
like the darting of a hawk',
RC xiii 222.15
.
médithir lem na [leg.
no?] tairissed cuil . . . form' íarcómla for a déni,
MacCongl. 85.6
(where Meyer emends: midithir) may be a reminiscence of this
construction (= it would have been all the same to me if a fly . . .
had alighted on my posterior?).
ba méite
it would be desirable, fitting, natural:
bá méte ná
cotlad nech oc á imrádud,
LU 1368
(
RC xxi 378.11
).
ba méite cach cride rod-car con-bóssad 'it were likely that every heart that loved him should burst',
Brislech 668
.
bá méte no beth
i scélaib . . . a ndoróni Hechtoir,
TTr.² 947.
(folld. by cond.)
ba méte leo ná fagēbtáis a ndoithin debtha co forcenn
mbetha . . . Ba méite leo . . . no brufitís múrv na Trói (= it
seemed to them they could never glut their desire for combat?),
1465
. uair is e cetna bescno . . . ba mede co mbad leithiu
quam gach mbescna it were natural that it should be more
comprehensive than any (other) speech,
Auraic. 34.
méte ann ó
chách gan a chleith it were not likely it would be concealed (?),
Keat. i p. 192
(poem). ba médi consnaidfi in tíag (= be sure
to take great care of),
Arch. Hib. iv 204.13
.
For a discussion of the phrase: is (ba) méite, folld. by
a dependent subjunctive, see
Ériu x 190
-
2
, where Bergin
takes it as =
it is (would be) likely
.
(e) in méit, folld. by rel. clause,
as much (many) as; those
who (whom): in met fuil o talmain corice suide (i.e. the distance),
Laws i 28.17 Comm.
in file . . . acras in mhed na dlighenn
who claims an amount to which he is not entitled,
58.17 Comm.
in met ata a n-oghacht dibh as many of them as are unmarried,
ZCP vi 26.19
. na gnéithe . . . nach cóir a ttús chomhfhocal
┐ an mhéd nach cóir 'na ndeireadh those which are incorrect
at the end,
IGT Introd. § 2.
grádhuighim an mhéid grádhuighios mé,
Proverbs viii 17.
do sgríobhadh na méide a fuaras don
tsenchas to write all I could find,
MS. Mat. 554.18
.
Similarly with poss. pron. or cach:
a méad do lean Lúiceifear,
Dán Dé v 12.
gach mét do ghairdechus dorinnedur ann,
ní féttur a innisin the amount of rejoicing . . . cannot be told,
RC xix 146 § 122.
gach meit bhias for nech dhe sin, is moidi
a anoir leo-som the more of it (tattooing) there is on a person,
Marco P. § 119.
gach med do arachtus doni the greater your
prowess,
Aen. 2898.
III As adv.
(a) in méit
(acc.)
so much, to such a degree: in
méit so (gl. adeo),
Enchir. Aug. 70a
(
ZCP vii 480
). in meit so
(tantum),
Ml. 65d5
. in meit se (tam),
93b2
.
Sg. 42b6
. Similarly
with prep.: arun méit se ni cuming (tam non potest),
Thes. ii
6.31
.
(b) méit (acc.?), folld. by subst. in acc. or later gen.,
as big
as
= méitithir:
dosbili . . . méit gamlías; súili . . . méit chore,
FB 91.
méit cliab [cleib v.l.] buana in dosbili as large as a
reaping-basket,
BDD 97.
in da míol . . . mett telach no cenn
sleibi cechtar de,
IT iii 237.76
.
anmanda . . . méit eich
aighnigh,
Anecd. i 53 § 23.
Cf.
ba meti cend fir in chnú,
LL
116b18
. Similarly mé(i)t is:
rícisi teneadh . . . met is fiadubla,
BB 382b10
.
meit is ri habraid a derc (.i. chommeit ri
cori),
IT i 163.1
. (
LL 208a16
).
(c) as rel. adv. introducing a subord. clause,
as much as,
as far as, to the extent that: meit atan echtrainn (= quanto
externi sunt),
Ml. 72d15
. meit as sochmacht as much as it well
can,
Thes. ii 2.32
(
Acr. 5d4
). met nad frithbeir (quantum non
obsistit),
36.27
, cf.
19.32
.
meid ataí-siu ac cessacht ḟorm-sa,
TBC-LL¹ 3695.
Similarly with art. or poss. pron.: in mét beta
firién in doini, is in méit sin is téchtae doib dilgadche in proportion as men are righteous, forgiveness is fitting for them,
Ml.
56a20
.
in meit ba glan a chorp . . . is e méit bá glana a ainimm,
PH 469.
is e a mét ros-lín oman so greatly did fear possess
them,
1121
. ba he a mét ro raid so co n-ingantaigtis `such was
the force with which he uttered this',
6589
.
as e a med ro
thuaircset he,
Aen. 2329.
a mēt rohsantoig nem nār | nach
tēt grād inn altōir ūad so much he longed for heaven that love
of the altar never left him,
ACL iii 306 § 6.
beith mar bhím a
mhéad as meise mé féin as long as I am myself (i.e. alive),
Dán Dé xxiii 17.
With prep. ar:
is de atberthe in siriti de ar a met
no delbad i n-ilrechtaib,
FB 75.
ar a mét ra thálsat na halma
a loim because of the abundance of milk the herds gave,
TBC-LL¹
1591.
ni erchoitigfet [na demna] duit ar a mét ro imgabais
iat,
PH 8342.
ar a mét ba forbailid lais in áirc . . . do thorachtain so great was his joy at the arrival of the ark,
LB 130b8
. Cf.
on meid adaimter i trebad `since (? to the extent that) he is
recognized',
Laws v 284. 29
, quoted by
O'Dav. 1261
with gl.
meit .i. uair
because
(a mistaken inference).
(d) cech méit
in proportion (as): cech méit is moo in onoir
i mbi nech, is í sin mét is guasacht dó (= quanto maior honor,
tanto maius periculum),
PH 4114.
cach mét ro fhás in gorta
. . . is é mét ro erig menma . . . na crechaired,
LB 154b18
.
Similarly: nach mét bes n-ire ó Adam (gl. quanto posterius
quisque),
Enchir. Aug. 86b
(
ZCP vii 485
). cacha ra ba di
mét a thurse great as was his fatigue,
FB 85
(= ce ro bai do
meit a toirsi, Eg.) is a contamination of this construction
and II (c).
(e) in later lang. with art., folld. by subord. clause,
in so far
as, inasmuch as, because: dogeb-sa ó Día, an meid as dalta
damh é, co ticfidh a trocaire air since he is my foster-son,
BCC
§ 314.
an mheid nach lor leat … sinde do bheathughadh,
Carswell 2073
, see also
Éigse ix 5
. ionnas gur ttugadh, an mhéid gur dhuine é, díol ceart
do Dhia inasmuch as he was man,
Ó Héodhusa 55.16
.
thug
[Dia] úghdarras dó . . . an mhéid gurab é mac an duine,
John
v 27.
gurab é an tAthair is tosach don Tríonóid, an mhéid go
bhfuil, ┐ gurab uaidh do geineadh an Mac inasmuch as He
exists (i.e. is Being),
Eochairsg. 38.23
;
76.23
. With art., followed by agus (ocus):
an mhéid agas go bfuilmaoid ar ar dteagasg lét easbul naomhtha,
Carswell 1067
.
an méid agas go bfuilmaoid diumdhach dhīnd féin,
845
.
in mhéid agas go raibhe sé 'na Dhia,
469
.
(f) dá mhéid
however great, much (late):
is beag gach sochair
dá mhéad,
Content. vi 188.
dá mhéad bhios ag cor 'na cheann
no matter how many are against him,
xxviii 58
.
dá mhéid
eagna ┐ neart bhíos aca,
TSh. 3500.
an tí chuireas a dhóigh
i nduine dá mhéid,
618
.
See also méitithir.