# meath
## English
### Noun

meath
* Obsolete form of mead (“the drink”).

### Anagrams

* hemat-, thema, Thame, tameh, Hatem, thame, Mehta

## Irish
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /mʲa(h)/
* Homophone: meá (some pronunciations)

### Etymology 1

From Old Irish methaid (“to degenerate”).

#### Verb

meath (present analytic meathann, future analytic meathfaidh, verbal noun meath, past participle meata)
* (intransitive) decline, decay, fail, deteriorate
* (transitive) waste, fritter away

##### Conjugation

| | | singular | singular | singular | plural | plural | plural | relative | autonomous |
| | | first | second | third | first | second | third | relative | autonomous |
| indicative | present | meathaim | meathann tú; meathair$^†$ | meathann sé, sí | meathaimid | meathann sibh | meathann siad; meathaid$^†$ | a mheathann; a mheathas / a meathann* | meatar |
| indicative | past | mheath mé; mheathas | mheath tú; mheathais | mheath sé, sí | mheathamar; mheath muid | mheath sibh; mheathabhair | mheath siad; mheathadar | a mheath / ar mheath* | meathadh |
| indicative | past habitual | mheathainn / meathainn‡‡ | mheatá / meatá‡‡ | mheathadh sé, sí / meathadh sé, sí‡‡ | mheathaimis; mheathadh muid / meathaimis‡‡; meathadh muid‡‡ | mheathadh sibh / meathadh sibh‡‡ | mheathaidís; mheathadh siad / meathaidís‡‡; meathadh siad‡‡ | a mheathadh / a meathadh* | mheataí / meataí‡‡ |
| future | future | meathfaidh mé; meathfad | meathfaidh tú; meathfair$^†$ | meathfaidh sé, sí | meathfaimid; meathfaidh muid | meathfaidh sibh | meathfaidh siad; meathfaid$^†$ | a mheathfaidh; a mheathfas / a meathfaidh* | meathfar |
| conditional | conditional | mheathfainn / meathfainn‡‡ | mheathfá / meathfá‡‡ | mheathfadh sé, sí / meathfadh sé, sí‡‡ | mheathfaimis; mheathfadh muid / meathfaimis‡‡; meathfadh muid‡‡ | mheathfadh sibh / meathfadh sibh‡‡ | mheathfaidís; mheathfadh siad / meathfaidís‡‡; meathfadh siad‡‡ | a mheathfadh / a meathfadh* | mheathfaí / meathfaí‡‡ |
| subjunctive | present | go meatha mé; go meathad$^†$ | go meatha tú; go meathair$^†$ | go meatha sé, sí | go meathaimid; go meatha muid | go meatha sibh | go meatha siad; go meathaid$^†$ | — | go meatar |
| subjunctive | past | dá meathainn | dá meatá | dá meathadh sé, sí | dá meathaimis; dá meathadh muid | dá meathadh sibh | dá meathaidís; dá meathadh siad | — | dá meataí |
| imperative | imperative | meathaim | meath | meathadh sé, sí | meathaimis | meathaigí; meathaidh$^†$ | meathaidís | — | meatar |
| verbal noun | verbal noun | meath | meath | meath | meath | meath | meath | meath | meath |
| past participle | past participle | meata | meata | meata | meata | meata | meata | meata | meata |
* indirect relative † archaic or dialect form ‡‡ dependent form used with particles that trigger eclipsis

### Etymology 2

From Old Irish meth (“decay”).

#### Noun

meath m (genitive singular meatha)
* verbal noun of meath
* decline, decay, decadence; failure

##### Declension

bare forms
case
singular
nominative
meath
vocative
a mheath
genitive
meatha
dative
meath
forms with the definite article
case
singular
nominative
an meath
genitive
an mheatha
dative
leis an meath don mheath :

##### Synonyms

* (decline, decay, failure): meathlú

##### Derived terms

* aghaidh mheata (“pale, thin, face”)
* croí meata (“faint, craven, heart”)
* gníomh meata (“cowardly, dastardly, deed”)
* meath na seanaoise (“senile decay”)
* meath uirbeach (“urban blight”)

### Etymology 3
#### Noun

meath m (genitive singular meath)
* Alternative form of meá (“balance, scales; weight, measure; equivalent; equal, match; estimation, judgment; measure, expedient”)

##### Declension

bare forms
case
singular
nominative
meath
vocative
a mheath
genitive
meath
dative
meath
forms with the definite article
case
singular
nominative
an meath
genitive
an mheath
dative
leis an meath don mheath :

### Mutation

Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in standard Modern Irish. All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.

### References

* ↑ Quiggin, E. C. (1906) A Dialect of Donegal, Cambridge University Press, page 105
* ↑ Gregory Toner, Sharon Arbuthnot, Máire Ní Mhaonaigh, Marie-Luise Theuerkauf, Dagmar Wodtko, editors (2019), “methaid”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language
* ↑ Gregory Toner, Sharon Arbuthnot, Máire Ní Mhaonaigh, Marie-Luise Theuerkauf, Dagmar Wodtko, editors (2019), “meth”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language

### Further reading

* Ó Dónaill, Niall (1977) “meath”, in Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla, Dublin: An Gúm, →ISBN