mei

See also: Appendix:Variations of "mei"

Languages (31)

Translingual

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Äiwoo • Atong (India) • Bavarian • Chuukese • Dutch • East Central German • Fala • Friulian • Italian • Japanese • Latin • Ligurian • Limburgish • Mandarin • Meyah • Mizo • Murui Huitoto • North Frisian • Norwegian Bokmål • Norwegian Nynorsk • Old French • Palauan • Papiamentu • Pennsylvania German • Romanian • Sassarese • Scots • Tongan • West Frisian • Zou

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Page categories

Translingual

Symbol

mei

1. (international standards) ISO 639-3 language code for Midob.

See also

• Wiktionary’s coverage of Midob terms

Äiwoo

Verb

mei

1. to sleep

References

• Næss, Åshild (2017), “mei”, in A short dictionary of Äiwoo (Studies in the Languages of Island Melanesia; A-PL 35)‎^[1], Canberra, ACT: Asia-Pacific Linguistics, College of Asia and the Pacific, Australian National University, page 65
• Ross, Malcolm; Næss, Åshild (December 2007), “An Oceanic origin for Äiwoo, the language of the Reef Islands?”, in Oceanic Linguistics‎^[2], volume 46, number 2, Honolulu, HI: University of Hawaii Press, →DOI, pages 456–98

Atong (India)

Alternative forms

• mai
• me

Etymology

From English May.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /mej/

Noun

mei (Bengali script মেয় or মেই)

1. May

Synonyms

• jetja

References

• van Breugel, Seino. 2015. Atong-English dictionary, second edition. Available online: https://www.academia.edu/487044/Atong_English_Dictionary.

Bavarian

Etymology

From Middle High German mīn, from Old High German mīn, from Proto-West Germanic *mīn, from Proto-Germanic *mīnaz, from Proto-Indo-European *méynos. Cognates include German mein, Yiddish מײַן (mayn), Dutch mijn, English mine and my, Old Norse mínn, Gothic 𐌼𐌴𐌹𐌽𐍃 (meins).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /mai̯/
• IPA^(key): /mæː/ (East Central, Vienna)
• Rhymes: -ai̯

Determiner

mei

1. (possessive) my

Declension

Declension of mei

	singular			plural
	masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative	mei	mei	mei	meine
dative	meim	meiner	meim	meine
accusative	mein	mei	mei	meine

Derived terms

• meiner
• meinige

See also

Bavarian possessive pronouns

			attributive (nominative case)		independent
			singular	plural
singular	1st person		mei	meine	meins
	2nd person	informal	dei	deine	deins
		formal	Eahna	Eahnare	Eahnas
	3rd person	m, n	sei	seine	seins
		f	ihr	ihre	ihrs
plural	1st person		unsa	unsare	unsas
	2nd person		eia	eire	eias
	3rd person		eahna	eahnare	eahnas

Chuukese

Verb

mei

1. (transitive, copulative) alternative form of mi (“to be”)

Dutch

Etymology

From Middle Dutch meye, from Latin Māius.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /mɛi̯/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Homophone: mij

Noun

mei m (uncountable, no diminutive)

1. May

   Synonym: (archaic) bloeimaand

Derived terms

• meiboom
• meidoorn
• meikever
• meiklokje
• meivakantie

Descendants

• Afrikaans: Mei
• Jersey Dutch: Māi
• Negerhollands: maj
• → Caribbean Hindustani: mai
• → Malay: Mei
  • Indonesian: Mei
• → Papiamentu: mei
• → Trió: mei

See also

Gregorian calendar months: maanden van de gregoriaanse kalenderedit

• januari
• februari
• maart
• april
• mei
• juni
• juli
• augustus
• september
• oktober
• november
• december

Anagrams

• iem., Mie

East Central German

Etymology

Cognate to German mein.

Pronoun

mei

1. (Silesian, Gebirgsschlesisch, Breslauisch) my (mine)

Declension

Breslauisch:

	Masculine Singular	Feminine Singular	Neuter Singular	Plural of all Genders
Nominative	mei, mei'	meine	mei, mei'	meine
Genitive	meines		meines	meiner
Dative	meinem, me'm	meiner	meinem, me'm	meinen
Accusative	meinen, me'n	meine	mei, mei'	meine

Gebirgsschlesisch:

	Masculine Singular	Feminine Singular	Neuter Singular	Plural of all Genders
Nominative	mei	meine	mei	meine
Dative	memm mem	menner	memm mem	men'n menn men
Accusative	men'n menn men	meine	mei	meine

See also

• ihch/iech; ich (1st ps. sg. personal pronoun)
• dei & Dei (2nd ps. sg.); sei (3rd ps. sg. m. & n.), ihr (3rd ps. sg. f.); insa / inser (1st ps. pl.)

Fala

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *éǵh₂der.

Proto-Italic *meos

Archaic Latin meos

Latin meum

Old Galician-Portuguese *mei

Fala mei

Inherited from Old Galician-Portuguese *mei, from Latin meum.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmei̯/
• Rhymes: -ei̯
• Syllabification: mei

Determiner

mei m sg (feminine miña, masculine plural meis, feminine plural miñas)

1. First-person singular possessive determiner; my

Pronoun

mei m sg (feminine miña, masculine plural meis, feminine plural miñas)

1. First-person singular possessive pronoun; mine

See also

Fala possessive determiners and pronouns

			possessee
			singular		plural
			masculine	feminine	masculine	feminine
possessor	first person	singular	mei	miña	meis	miñas
		plural	nosu	nosa	nosus	nosas
	second person	singular	tei	túa, tu1	teis	túas, tus1
		plural	vosu	vosa	vosus	vosas
	third person		sei	súa, su1	seis	súas, sus1

¹ Determiner forms used in Lagarteiru before a noun.

References

• Valeš, Miroslav (2021), Diccionariu de A Fala: lagarteiru, mañegu, valverdeñu (web), 2nd edition, Minde, Portugal: CIDLeS, published 2022, →ISBN, page 198

Friulian

Etymology

From Latin milium. Compare Italian miglio, Venetan méjo, Romanian mei, Dalmatian mail, Catalan mill, Spanish mijo.

Noun

mei m (plural mei)

1. millet

Italian

Etymology 1

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmɛ.i/
• Rhymes: -ɛi
• Hyphenation: mè‧i

Adjective

mei

1. masculine plural of meo

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmɛ.i/
• Rhymes: -ɛi
• Hyphenation: mè‧i

Verb

mei

1. inflection of meare:
   1. second-person singular present indicative
   2. first/second/third-person singular present subjunctive
   3. third-person singular imperative

Etymology 3

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmɛj/
• Rhymes: -ɛj
• Hyphenation: mèi

Adjective

mei (invariable)

1. (archaic) alternative form of meglio

Adverb

mei

1. (archaic) alternative form of meglio

Etymology 4

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmɛj/
• Rhymes: -ɛj
• Hyphenation: mèi

Noun

mei m (invariable)

1. (archaic) alternative form of mezzo

Anagrams

• -ime, emi, emi-, ime, mie

Japanese

Romanization

mei

1. Rōmaji transcription of めい

Latin

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): [ˈme.iː]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): [ˈmɛː.i]

Pronoun

meī

1. genitive singular of egō̆

Determiner

meī

1. inflection of meus:
   1. nominative/vocative masculine plural
   2. genitive/locative masculine/neuter singular

Ligurian

Noun

mei ? (please provide plural)

1. apple

Limburgish

Alternative forms

• Méï (Eupen)
• Mai (Krefeld)
• Meie (Selfkant)

Noun

mei

1. May (month)

See also

• mei on the Limburgish Wikipedia.Wikipedia ^li

Mandarin

Romanization

mei

1. nonstandard spelling of méi
2. nonstandard spelling of měi
3. nonstandard spelling of mèi

Usage notes

• Transcriptions of Mandarin into the Latin script often do not distinguish between the critical tonal differences employed in the Mandarin language, using words such as this one without indication of tone.

Meyah

Noun

mei

1. water
2. river
3. cloth

References

• Gravelle, Gilles (2001), Daftar kata Meyah-Indonesia dan kebalikan Indonesia-Meyah [A Meyah-Indonesian Lexicon]‎^[3] (in Indonesian), Manokwari, Irian Jaya, Indonesia: Yayasan Pengembangan Masyarakat Arfak (YPMA), pages 30–1
• G. P. Reesink, Languages of the Eastern Bird's Head (2002), page 5: 'water': Meyah mei

Mizo

Etymology 1

From Proto-Kuki-Chin *maj (“fire”), from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *məj (“fire”).

Noun

mei

1. fire

Derived terms

• kângmei

Etymology 2

From Proto-Kuki-Chin *C-maj (“tail”), from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *lməj (“tail; penis”).

Noun

mei

1. tail
2. stern (of a ship)

References

• Lorrain, J. Herbert (1940), “mei”, in Dictionary of the Lushai language, Calcutta: Asiatic Society

Murui Huitoto

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈmɛi̯]
• Hyphenation: mei

Etymology 1

Cognates include Minica Huitoto mei and Nüpode Huitoto mei.

Adverb

mei

1. afterwards
2. so, thus

Postposition

mei

1. after
   • 2008 [1978], Huitoto Murui Bible, 2nd edition, Mateo 1:6, page 5:

     Jobaimemo naimɨe fiodaiya mei, naiñaiñona ote.

     After that man died in the war, he got her.

Etymology 2

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Root

mei

1. shame

References

• Shirley Burtch (1983), Diccionario Huitoto Murui (Tomo I) (Linguistica Peruana No. 20)‎^[4] (in Spanish), Yarinacocha, Peru: Instituto Lingüístico de Verano, page 175
• Katarzyna Izabela Wojtylak (2017), A grammar of Murui (Bue): a Witotoan language of Northwest Amazonia.‎^[5], Townsville: James Cook University press (PhD thesis), pages 82, 177

North Frisian

Etymology 1

From Proto-Germanic *maganą.

Verb

mei

1. (Föhr-Amrum) would, would like to, like to

   Meest mi gau ens halep?

   Would you help me real quick?

Conjugation

Conjugation of mei (Föhr-Amrum dialect)

infinitive I	mei
infinitive II	(tu) meien
past participle	maaden
imperative singular	—
imperative plural	—
	present	past
1st singular	mei	maad
2nd singular	meest	maadst
3rd singular	mei	maad
plural	mei	maad
	perfect	pluperfect
1st singular	haa maaden	hed maaden
2nd singular	heest maaden	hedst maaden
3rd singular	hee maaden	hed maaden
plural	haa maaden	hed maaden
	future (skel)	future (wel)
1st singular	skal mei	wal mei
2nd singular	skääl mei	wääl mei
3rd singular	skal mei	wal mei
plural	skel mei	wel mei

Alternative forms

• mooge (Mooring)
• mai (Sylt)

Etymology 2

Ultimately from Latin Māius.

Noun

mei m

1. (Föhr-Amrum) May

Alternative forms

• moi (Mooring)
• Mai (Sylt)

See also

• Months of the year in Föhr-Amrum Frisian: janewoore, febrewoore, marts, april, mei, jüüne, jüüle, august, september, oktuuber, nofember, deetsember

Norwegian Bokmål

Noun

mei m (definite singular meien, indefinite plural meier, definite plural meiene)

1. alternative form of meie

Norwegian Nynorsk

Alternative forms

• meid

Etymology

From Old Norse meiðr.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /mɛɪː/

Noun

mei m (definite singular meien, indefinite plural meiar, definite plural meiane)

1. runner of a sled, skid

References

• “mei” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.
• “mei”, in Norsk Ordbok: Ordbok over det Norske Folkemålet og det Nynorske Skriftmålet (in Norwegian Nynorsk), Oslo: Det Norske Samlaget, 1950–2016, →ISBN.
• “Meid” in Ivar Aasen (1873) Norsk Ordbog med dansk Forklaring

Anagrams

• eim, ime, mie

Old French

Pronoun

mei

1. (Anglo-Norman) alternative form of moi

Palauan

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /mɛi/

Verb

mei

1. (intransitive) to come, to arrive

References

• mei in Palauan Language Online: Palauan-English Dictionary, at tekinged.com.
• mei in Palauan-English Dictionary, at trussel2.com.
• mei in Lewis S. Josephs; Edwin G. McManus; Masa-aki Emesiochel (1977), Palauan-English Dictionary, University Press of Hawaii, →ISBN, page 147.

Papiamentu

Etymology 1

Etymology tree

Portuguese meioder.

Portuguese meio

Kabuverdianu meiuder.

Papiamentu mei

Derived from Portuguese meio and Kabuverdianu meiu.

Adjective

mei

1. half
2. middle

Etymology 2

Derived from Dutch mei.

Noun

mei

1. May

See also

Months of the year: yanüari (“January”), febrüari (“February”), mart (“March”), aprel (“April”), mei (“May”), yüni (“June”), yüli (“July”), ougùstùs (“August”), sèptèmber (“September”), oktober (“October”), novèmber (“November”), desèmber (“December”).

Pennsylvania German

Etymology

Compare German mein, Dutch mijn, English my.

Determiner

mei

1. (possessive) my

Declension

Declension of mei

	singular				plural
	m	f	n
nominative	mei	mei	mei		mei
dative	meim	meinre	meim		meine
accusative	mei	mei	mei		mei

Romanian

Etymology 1

Inherited from Latin meī, masculine plural of meus.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [mej]
• Rhymes: -ej

Determiner

mei

1. masculine plural of meu

Etymology 2

Inherited from Latin milium, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *melh₂- (“to grind, crush”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /mej/

Noun

mei n (plural meiuri)

1. millet

   Synonym: păsat

Declension

	singular		plural
	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative-accusative	mei	meiul	meiuri	meiurile
genitive-dative	mei	meiului	meiuri	meiurilor
vocative	meiule		meiurilor

See also

Romanian personal pronouns

number	person		nominative	accusative	dative	accusative	dative
				stressed		unstressed
singular
	1st		eu	mine	mie	mă	îmi
	2nd		tu, dumneata1, dumneavoastră2	tine, dumneata1, dumneavoastră2	ție, dumitale1, dumneavoastră2	te, vă2	îți, vă2
	3rd	m	el, dumnealui2	e, dumnealui2	lui, dumnealui2	îl	îi
		f	ea, dumneaei2		ei, dumneaei2	o
plural
	1st		noi		nouă	ne
	2nd		voi, dumneavoastră2		vouă, dumneavoastră2	vă
	3rd	m	ei, dumnealor2		lor, dumnealor2	îi	le
		f	ele, dumnealor2			le

¹ Semi-polite.
² Polite.

Sassarese

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmei/

Adjective

mei

1. masculine/feminine plural of méiu
2. masculine/feminine plural of meu

Pronoun

mei m pl or f pl

1. masculine/feminine plural of méiu
2. masculine/feminine plural of meu

Scots

Determiner

mei

1. alternative form of my

References

• “my, possess. pron.”, in The Dictionary of the Scots Language, Edinburgh: Scottish Language Dictionaries, 2004–present, →OCLC, retrieved 23 May 2024, reproduced from William A[lexander] Craigie, A[dam] J[ack] Aitken [et al.], editors, A Dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue: […], Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 1931–2002, →OCLC.

Tongan

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /me.i/

Noun

mei

1. breadfruit

Preposition

mei

1. from

West Frisian

Etymology

From Old Frisian mith, mit, mei, mithi, mithe, methe (“with”), from Proto-Germanic *midi (“with”), from Proto-Indo-European *médʰi, *meta (“with”).

Pronunciation

• (Clay) IPA^(key): /mai̯/
• (Wood) IPA^(key): /mɛi̯/

Preposition

mei

1. with

   kontakt mei oare talen ― contact with other languages

Further reading

• “mei”, in Wurdboek fan de Fryske taal (in Dutch), 2011

Zou

Etymology 1

Mei (1).

From Proto-Kuki-Chin *may, from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *məj.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [méi̯]
• Hyphenation: mei

Noun

méi

1. fire

Derived terms

• méihól

Etymology 2

From Proto-Kuki-Chin *may.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [méi̯]
• Hyphenation: mei

Noun

méi

1. tail

Derived terms

• vòhméi

References

• Philip Thangliènmâng (2010), Minimal dictionary and Self-tutor Functional Grammar in Zo-English-Hindi, New Delhi: Zoculsin, →ISBN, pages 16, 32
• Lukram Himmat Singh (2013), A Descriptive Grammar of Zou (PhD thesis), Canchipur: Manipur University, page 64