μείων: Difference between revisions

{{etym

|etymtx=Grammatical information: n.<br />Meaning: <b class="b3">μεῖον</b> [[smaller]] (Il., Hp., X., Dor., Arc.; cf. Seiler Steigerungsformen 115f.), also <b class="b3">μειότερος</b> (A. R., Arat.), superl. <b class="b3">μεῖστος</b> [[least]] (Lokr. Va, Hdn., H.).<br />Dialectal forms: Myc. [[meujo]], [[mewijo]].<br />Compounds: As 1. member e.g. in <b class="b3">μειον-εκτέω</b> <b class="b2">draw the shorter, be in disadvantage</b> with <b class="b3">-εξία</b> (X.), from <b class="b3">μεῖον ἔχειν</b> after <b class="b3">πλεον-έκτης</b>, <b class="b3">-εκτέω</b>, <b class="b3">-εξία</b> (Fraenkel Nom. ag. 1, 166).<br />Derivatives: Derivv. (analogical after the <b class="b3">ο-</b>stems [Schwyzer 731 f.], not with Egli Heteroklisie 77 from a secondary <b class="b3">ο-</b>stem <b class="b3">μεῖο-ν</b>): 1. <b class="b3">μειότης</b> f. [[minority]] (A.D., Vett.Val.); 2. <b class="b3">μειόομαι</b>, <b class="b3">-όω</b> <b class="b2">become smaller, be inferior, make smaller</b> (Hp., X., Arist.) with <b class="b3">μεί-ωσις</b> [[lessening]] (Hp., Arist.), <b class="b3">-ωμα</b> <b class="b2">lessening of wealth</b> = [[penalty]] (X. An. 5, 8, 1), <b class="b3">-ώτης</b> m. <b class="b2">who makes smaller</b> (Paul. Al.), <b class="b3">-ωτικός</b> [[decreasing]] (hell.).<br />Origin: IE [Indo-European] [711] <b class="b2">*mei-u-</b> <b class="b2">`less, small</b><br />Etymology: Primary comparative from a verb [[lessen]] in Skt. <b class="b2">minā́ti</b> [[lessen]], [[damage]], <b class="b2">mī́yate</b> <b class="b2">become less, dwindle</b>; cf. the opposite <b class="b3">πλείων</b>, <b class="b3">πλέων</b>, <b class="b3">πλεῖστος</b> (s. <b class="b3">πολύς</b>). The judgement of the general <b class="b3">-ει-</b> is uncertain. -- Myc. [[meujo]], [[mewijo]], appar. = <b class="b3">μείων</b>, cannot be combined with this explanation, but might find support in Toch. B [[maiwe]] [[small]], [[young]] (from <b class="b2">*meiu̯o-</b>, <b class="b2">*moiu̯o-</b>; Duchesne-Guillemin BSL 41, 157); but the <b class="b2">u̯o-</b>suffix (older <b class="b2">u-</b>stem?) belongs only to the positive. -- Diff. on <b class="b3">μείων</b> Osthoff. MU 6, 303ff.: from <b class="b3">*μείνων</b> to <b class="b3">ἀ-μείνων</b> (s.v.) with loss of the <b class="b3">-ν-</b> after <b class="b3">πλείων</b> (? improbable). Cf. <b class="b3">μινύθω</b>.

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