μύουρος
κατὰ τὸν δεύτερον, φασί, πλοῦν τὰ ἐλάχιστα ληπτέον τῶν κακῶν → we must as second best, as people say, take the least of the evils
English (LSJ)
(B), ἡ, a plant,
A mouse-tail, Orib.Fr.52, Alex.Trall.8.2. II = σάμψυχον, Ps.-Dsc.3.39.
μύουρ-ος (A), ον, (μῦς, οὐρά)
A tapering (lit. mousetailed), of a non-carnivorous fish's στόμα (snout), Arist.PA662a32, 697a1; of the αἱμόρροος 11, ἐπ' εὖρος τέτρυται μύουρος ἀπὸ φλογέοιο καρήνου Nic.Th.287, cf. 225; ἐξ εὐρείας τῆς κεφαλῆς μείουρος κάτεισιν ἔστε ἐπὶ τὴν οὐράν Ael.NA15.13· εἰς (ἐπὶ) μείουρον ἄγεσθαι taper towards the tail, Philum.Ven.21.1, 27.1; ἐν τῷ μειούρῳ τῆς οὐρᾶς the tapering part of a horse's tail, Hippiatr.55; τὸ μείουρον (sc. τοῦ σπέρματος) πρὸς τὴν γῆν ἄγοντας Gp.10.57.8, cf. 10.63.4; κάμαξ μύουρος Apollod.Poliorc.172.9 (v.l. μεί-), 182.6, cf. Ph.Bel.51.8 (μύ-), 83.20 (μεί-) ; πύργον . . ἐς μύουρον ἀνιόντα Paus.10.16.1; αἱ πρὸς ὄμμα τε καὶ ὀρθογώνιοι στοαὶ πόρρωθεν μείουροι φαίνονται Hero *Deff.135.9 (v.l. μύ-) ; μετρεῖ τὰ μείουρα ὡς κώνους κολούρους, i.e. roughly, ib.8; σφὴν μείουρος Id.*Stereom.1.28; λίθος μείουρος ib.2.17 (v.l. μύ-), 59; ξύλον μύουρον Id.*Mens.8 (as Subst. μείουρος, ὁ, tapering prism, Id.*Deff.133.2, *Geom.3.24); ἐκφύσεις κατὰ τὸ ἄκρον μείουροι Diocl.Fr.27; μείουρος σχηματισμὸς [τῶν δακτύλων], i.e. with the tips pressed together, Sor.2.60; μύουρον σχῆμα Str.2.5.6, Apollod.Poliorc.181.3; μερίς, τμῆμα, γραμμή, Str.11.11.7. Adv., συνηγμένων μειούρως τῶν δακτύλων Paul.Aeg.6.74. 2 στίχοι μείουροι 'tapering' hexameters, in which the first syllable of one of the last two feet is short instead of long, Ath. 14.632e, cf. Sch.Heph.p.290 C., Eust.900.7. 3 of the pulse, dying away gradually, Gal.8.480,524, 9.314. Adv. -ρως ibid. 4 of an epic poem with only a single μῦθος, ὥστε . . βραχέως δεικνύμενον μύουρον φαίνεσθαι it seems too short, Arist.Po.1462b6; of periods, Id.Rh.1409b18. (In this group of words codd. freq. vary between μυ- and μει-; both μυουρία and μειουρία are recognized by Eust. l. c.: μυ- prob. became μει- by phonetic change, cf. ἐρρηγεῖα, κώδεια, etc.: μῠ- Nic. Th.225, D.P.l.c., but μῡ- Nic. Th.287.)