# meta-
## English
### Alternative forms

* met- (prevocalic)

### Pronunciation

* (Received Pronunciation) IPA: /ˈmɛt.ə/, /ˌmɛt.ə/
* (General American, Canada) IPA: /ˈmɛt.ə/, [ˈmɛɾ.ə], /ˌmɛt.ə/, /ˌmɛɾ.ə/
** Audio (US):(file)
* (General Australian, New Zealand) IPA: /ˈmet.ə/, [ˈmeɾ.ə], /ˌmet.ə/, /ˌmeɾ.ə/

### Etymology 1

From Ancient Greek μετα- (meta-), from μετά (metá), from Mycenaean Greek 𐀕𐀲 (me-ta), possibly from Proto-Indo-European *meth₂ (“in the middle”).

#### Pronunciation

Only relating to metabolism:
* (Received Pronunciation) IPA: /mɪˈta/
* (General American) IPA: /məˈtæ/
* (General Australian) IPA: /mɪˈtæ/

#### Prefix

meta-
* (anatomy and zoology) Behind. [From 19th century]
* (botany and zoology) Later or subsequent. [From 19th century]
* (obsolete, architecture and zoology) Situated between two segments. [From 19th century]
* (chemistry) Having fewer molecules of water than the ortho- equivalent. [From 19th century]
* (organic chemistry) in isomeric benzene derivatives, having the two substituents in alternate (1,3) positions; contrasted with ortho- and para-. [From 1833]
* (biochemistry) Relating to metabolism.

##### Translations

    The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

##### See also

* protero- (early, first)

### Etymology 2

Back-formation from metaphysics.

#### Prefix

meta-
* Transcending, encompassing.
* Pertaining to a level above or beyond; reflexive or recursive; about itself or about other things of the same type. For example, metadata is data that describes data, metalanguage is language that describes language, etc. [From 17th century]
* Having analogies with metaphysics.

##### Related terms

* epi-

##### Translations
### Etymology 3

Back-formation from metamorphism.

#### Prefix

meta-
* (geology) Modified by metamorphosis; analogies and derivatives of metamorphism. [From 19th century]

##### Translations
### Etymology 4

Back-formation from metastasis.

#### Prefix

meta-
* (pathology) Consequent on.

##### Translations
### Further reading

* List of Ancient Greek words starting with meta-, on Perseus

### Anagrams

* maté, team, meat, mate, Tame, ATEM, AEMT, Atem, -mate, tame, Team, Tema

## Czech
### Etymology

Derived from Ancient Greek μετα- (meta-).

### Prefix

meta-
* meta- (pertaining to a level above or beyond)
    ‎meta- + ‎jazyk → ‎metajazyk

#### Derived terms
### Further reading

* “meta-”, in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého (in Czech), 1960–1971, 1989
* meta- in Slovník afixů užívaných v češtině, 2017

## Dutch
### Etymology

Internationalism (see English meta-), from Ancient Greek μετα- (meta-).

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈmeː.taː/

### Prefix

meta-
* meta-

#### Derived terms
## Finnish
### Etymology

From Ancient Greek μετα- (meta-).

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈmetɑ-/, [ˈme̞t̪ɑ̝-]

### Prefix

meta-
* meta-

#### Derived terms
## German
### Alternative forms

* met- (prevocalic)

### Etymology

Borrowed from Ancient Greek μετα- (meta-).

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈmeta/, /ˈmɛta/
* Audio:(file)

### Prefix

meta-
* meta-

#### Derived terms
### Further reading

* “meta-” in Duden online
* “meta-” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache

## Hungarian
### Etymology

From Ancient Greek μετα- (meta-).

### Pronunciation

* IPA: [ˈmɛtɒ]
* Hyphenation: me‧ta

### Prefix

meta-
* meta-

#### Derived terms
### References

* ↑ Tótfalusi, István. Idegenszó-tár: Idegen szavak értelmező és etimológiai szótára (’A Storehouse of Foreign Words: an explanatory and etymological dictionary of foreign words’). Budapest: Tinta Könyvkiadó, 2005. →ISBN

## Indonesian
### Etymology

From Ancient Greek μετα- (meta-).

### Pronunciation

* IPA: [mɛta]
* Hyphenation: mè‧ta

### Prefix

meta-
* meta-

#### Alternative forms

* met-

#### Derived terms
### Further reading

* “meta-” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia, Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016.

## Italian
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˌmɛ.ta/
* Hyphenation: mè‧ta-

### Prefix

meta-
* meta-

#### Derived terms
### Anagrams

* mate, matè, team, tema

## Polish
### Etymology

Derived from Ancient Greek μετα- (meta-).

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /mɛ.ta/
* Audio:(file)
* Rhymes: -ɛta
* Syllabification: [please specify syllabification manually]
* Homophone: meta

### Prefix

meta-
* meta-
    ‎meta- + ‎fizyka → ‎metafizyka

#### Derived terms
### Further reading

* meta- in Polish dictionaries at PWN

## Portuguese
### Etymology

Borrowed from Ancient Greek μετα- (meta-).

### Prefix

meta-
* meta-

#### Derived terms
## Spanish
### Etymology

Borrowed from Ancient Greek μετά (metá).

### Prefix

meta-
* meta-

#### Derived terms
### Further reading

* “meta-”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2024 December 10

## Welsh
### Etymology

Borrowed from English meta-, from Ancient Greek μετά (metá).

### Prefix

meta-
* meta-

#### Derived terms
### Further reading

* R. J. Thomas, G. A. Bevan, P. J. Donovan, A. Hawke et al., editors (1950–present), “meta-”, in Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru Online (in Welsh), University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies