Indo-European Lexicon
PIE Etymon and IE Reflexes
Below we display: a Proto-Indo-European (PIE) etymon adapted from Pokorny, with our own English gloss; our Semantic Field assignment(s) for the etymon, linked to information about the field(s); an optional Comment; and Reflexes (derived words) in various Indo-European languages, organized by family/group in west-to-east order where Germanic is split into West/North/East families and English, our language of primary emphasis, is artificially separated from West Germanic. IE Reflexes appear most often as single words with any optional letter(s) enclosed in parentheses; but alternative full spellings are separated by '/' and "principal parts" appear in a standard order (e.g. masculine, feminine, and neuter forms) separated by commas.
Reflexes are annotated with: Part-of-Speech and/or other Grammatical feature(s); a short Gloss which, especially for modern English reflexes, may be confined to the oldest sense; and some Source citation(s) with 'LRC' always understood as editor. Keys to PoS/Gram feature abbreviations and Source codes appear below the reflexes; at the end are links to the previous/next etyma [in Pokorny's alphabetic order] that have reflexes.
All reflex pages are currently under active construction; as time goes on, corrections may be made and/or more etyma & reflexes may be added.
Pokorny Etymon: meg̑(h)- : meg̑(h)- 'big, much, great, major, mega-'
Semantic Field(s): Big, Large, Great
Indo-European Reflexes:
| Family/Language | Reflex(es) | PoS/Gram. | Gloss | Source(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| English | ||||
| Old English: | magister, mægister | n.masc | master, leader | ASD/W7 |
| micel, mycel | adj/adv | mickle | LRC | |
| Middle English: | amaistrien | vb | to master | MEV |
| magistrat | n | magistrate | W7 | |
| magnate | n | magnate | W7 | |
| magnifien | vb | to magnify | W7 | |
| magnitude | n | magnitude | W7 | |
| maieste | n | majesty | W7 | |
| maiour | adj | major | W7 | |
| maire | n | mayor | W7 | |
| maistresse | n | mistress | W7 | |
| master | n | master | W7 | |
| maxime | n | maxim | W7 | |
| May | prop.n | May | W7 | |
| mikel, michel | adj | mickle | W7 | |
| muchel, muche | adj | much, large | W7 | |
| English: | acromegaly | n | chronic hyperpituitarism (enlargement of feet/hands) | AHD/W7 |
| cardiomegaly | n | abnormal heart enlargement | AHD | |
| maestoso | adj | stately, majestic | AHD/W7 | |
| maestro | n | master (in art/music) | AHD/W7 | |
| magisterial | adj | authoritative, re: characteristics of master/teacher | AHD/W7 | |
| magistral | adj | magisterial, re: master | AHD/W7 | |
| magistrate | n | official charged with administration of laws | AHD/W7 | |
| magnate | n | person of rank/power/influence/distinction | AHD/W7 | |
| magnific | adj | magnificent | AHD/W7 | |
| magnificent | adj | great in deed/place | AHD/W7 | |
| magnifico | n | nobleman of Venice | AHD/W7 | |
| magnify | vb | to laud, extol | AHD/W7 | |
| magniloquent | adj | grandiloquent, lofty/extravagant in speech | AHD | |
| magnitude | n | greatness of character/position | AHD/W7 | |
| magnum | n | large wine bottle (ca. 2/5 gallon) | AHD/W7 | |
| maharaja(h) | n | king/prince in India | AHD | |
| maharani, maharanee | n | maharajah's wife | AHD | |
| maharishi | n | teacher of mysticism/spiritual knowledge (Hinduism) | AHD | |
| mahatma | n | person revered for wisdom/selflessness/high-mindedness | AHD/W7 | |
| majesty | n | sovereign power/dignity/authority | AHD/W7 | |
| major | adj | greater in rank/dignity, interest/importance | AHD/W7 | |
| major-domo | n | head butler/steward in noble's household | AHD | |
| majority | n | more than half, greater part/number | AHD | |
| majuscule | n | large (e.g. capital) letter | AHD/W7 | |
| master | n | male leader/teacher | AHD/W7 | |
| master | vb | to control, overcome, become master | W7 | |
| maxim | n | general truth, rule of conduct, fundamental principle | AHD/W7 | |
| maximum | n | greatest value/quantity attained/attainable | AHD/W7 | |
| May | prop.n | 5th month (in Gregorian calendar) | AHD/W7 | |
| mayor | n | nominal head/chief executive of city/borough | AHD/W7 | |
| mega- | pfx | great, large | AHD/W7 | |
| megal(o)- | pfx | great, exaggerated in size/greatness | AHD | |
| megalocardia | n | cardiomegaly | AHD | |
| megalopolis | n | region of large adjacent cities | AHD | |
| Meistersinger | prop.n | master of 14th-16th century German guild cultivating traditions of medieval Minnesingers | W7 | |
| mickle | adj/adv | much, great; very | AHD/W7 | |
| mister | n | sir, master, man without title | AHD/W7 | |
| mistral | n | strong cold dry north(west) wind | AHD/W7 | |
| mistress | n | woman with power/ownership/authority | AHD/W7 | |
| much | adj | great in amount/degree/extent/quantity | AHD/W7 | |
| omega | n | last letter in Greek alphabet | AHD | |
| West Germanic | ||||
| Old Saxon: | mikil | adj | mickle | ASD |
| Old High German: | mihhil, michil | adj | mickle | ASD/W7 |
| Middle High German: | meistersinger | n.masc | Meistersinger, lit. master-singer | W7 |
| German: | Meistersinger | n.masc | Meistersinger | W7 |
| North Germanic | ||||
| Old Norse: | mjǫk | adj/adv | much; very | LRC |
| Icelandic: | mikill | adj | mickle | ASD |
| Danish: | megen | adj | mickle | TLL |
| Swedish: | mycken | adj | mickle | TLL |
| East Germanic | ||||
| Gothic: | mikilei | n.wk.fem | greatness | LRC |
| mikils | adj | mickle | LRC | |
| Italic | ||||
| Latin: | magis | adv | more | LRC |
| magister, magistri | n.masc | master, professor | W7 | |
| magistralis | adj | of a master/professor | W7 | |
| magistratus | n.masc | magistracy, magistrate | W7 | |
| magnifico, magnificare | vb | to magnify | W7 | |
| magnificus | adj | magnificent, noble in character | W7 | |
| magnitudo, magnitudinis | n.fem | size, greatness | LRC | |
| magnus, magna, magnum | adj | large, great | LRC | |
| Maia | prop.n.fem | Roman goddess | W7 | |
| Maius | prop.n.masc | May | LRC | |
| majestas, majestatis | n.fem | majesty | W7 | |
| major, maior | adj.comp | major, larger | W7 | |
| majusculus | adj | rather large (diminutive) | W7 | |
| maximus, maxima, maximum | adj.sup/n | greatest; greatest/highest thing | W7 | |
| Late Latin: | magister | n.masc | master, professor | W7 |
| magisterialis | adj | re: authority | W7 | |
| magisterium | n.neut | office of a master | W7 | |
| magistralis | adj | of the master/professor | W7 | |
| magnates | n.masc | magnate | W7 | |
| Portuguese: | mas | conj | but | TLL |
| Spanish: | mas | conj | but | TLL |
| Old French: | amaistrier | vb | to master | MEV |
| mai | n.masc | May | W7 | |
| maire | n.masc | mayor, headmaster | W7 | |
| maistre | n.masc | master | W7 | |
| maistresse | n.fem | mistress | W7 | |
| majesté | n.fem | majesty | W7 | |
| Middle French: | magnifier | vb | to magnify, make larger | W7 |
| magnifique | adj | magnificent | W7 | |
| maistresse | n.fem | mistress | W7 | |
| maxime | n.fem | maxim, saying | W7 | |
| French: | acromégalie | n.fem | acromegaly | W7 |
| mais | conj | but | TLL | |
| majuscule | adj | capital | W7 | |
| mistral | n.masc | mistral | R1/W7 | |
| Provençal: | mistral | adj | masterful | W7 |
| Italian: | ma | conj | but | TLL |
| maestà | n.fem | majesty | W7 | |
| maestoso | adj | majestic, stately | CID/W7 | |
| maèstro | n.masc | master, teacher | W7 | |
| magnifico | adj | magnificent | W7 | |
| Hellenic | ||||
| Greek: | μεγάθης | n.fem | height | LRC |
| μεγᾰλεῖος | adj | mighty, splendid, magnificent | LRC | |
| μεγάλος | adj | great | LRC | |
| μεγάλως | adv | greatly | LRC | |
| μέγᾰς | adj | big, tall, great | LRC | |
| μέγεθος | n.neut | size | LRC | |
| Indic | ||||
| Sanskrit: | mahant | adj | great | W7 |
| mahātman | adj | great-souled | W7 | |
Key to Part-of-Speech/Grammatical feature abbreviations:
| Abbrev. | Meaning | |
|---|---|---|
| adj | = | adjective |
| adv | = | adverb(ial) |
| comp | = | comparative |
| conj | = | conjunction |
| fem | = | feminine (gender) |
| masc | = | masculine (gender) |
| n | = | noun |
| neut | = | neuter (gender) |
| pfx | = | prefix |
| prop | = | proper |
| sup | = | superlative |
| vb | = | verb |
| wk | = | weak (inflection) |
Key to information Source codes (always with 'LRC' as editor):
| Code | Citation | |
|---|---|---|
| AHD | = | Calvert Watkins: The American Heritage Dictionary of Indo-European Roots, 2nd ed. (2000) |
| ASD | = | Joseph Bosworth and T. Northcote Toller: An Anglo-Saxon Dictionary (1898) |
| CID | = | Cassell's Italian Dictionary (1958) |
| LRC | = | Linguistics Research Center, University of Texas, Austin |
| MEV | = | J.R.R. Tolkien: A Middle English Vocabulary (1922) |
| R1 | = | Josette Rey-Debove and Alain Rey, eds. Le Nouveau Petit Robert (1993) |
| TLL | = | Frederick Bodmer: The Loom of Language (1944) |
| W7 | = | Webster's Seventh New Collegiate Dictionary (1963) |
