mean ©
1. v. To intend. 2. v. To intend, to plan (to do); to have as one's intention. I didn't mean to knock your tooth out. I mean to go to Baddeck this summer. I meant to take the car in for a smog check, but it slipped my mind. 3. v. (intransitive) To have intentions of a given kind. Don't be angry; she meant well. 4. v. (transitive, usually in passive) To intend (something) for a given purpose or fate; to predestine. Actually this desk was meant for the subeditor. Man was not meant to question such things. 5. v. To convey meaning. 6. v. To convey (a given sense); to signify, or indicate (an object or idea). The sky is red this morning—does that mean we're in for a storm? 7. v. Of a word, symbol etc: to have reference to, to signify. What does this hieroglyph mean? 8. v. Of a person (or animal etc): to intend to express, to imply, to hint at, to allude. I'm afraid I don't understand what you mean. He is a little different, if you know what I mean. 9. v. To have conviction in (something said or expressed); to be sincere in (what one says). Does she really mean what she said to him last night? Say what you mean and mean what you say. 10. v. To result in; to bring about. One faltering step means certain death. 11. v. To be important (to). My home life means a lot to me. 12. v. (Ireland, UK regional) To lament. 13. adj. (obsolete) Common; general. 14. adj. Of a common or low origin, grade, or quality; common; humble. a man of mean parentage / a mean abode 15. adj. Low in quality or degree; inferior; poor; shabby. a mean appearance / mean dress 16. adj. Without dignity of mind; destitute of honour; low-minded; spiritless; base. a mean motive 17. adj. Of little value or account; worthy of little or no regard; contemptible; despicable. 18. adj. (chiefly UK) Ungenerous; stingy; tight-fisted. He's so mean. I've never seen him spend so much as five pounds on presents for his children. 19. adj. Disobliging; pettily offensive or unaccommodating; small. 20. adj. Selfish; acting without consideration of others; unkind. It was mean to steal the girl's piggy bank, but he just had to get uptown and he had no cash of his own. 21. adj. Causing or intending to cause intentional harm; bearing ill will towards another; cruel; malicious. Watch out for her, she's mean. I said good morning to her, and she punched me in the nose. 22. adj. Powerful; fierce; harsh; damaging. It must have been a mean typhoon that levelled this town. 23. adj. Accomplished with great skill; deft; hard to compete with. Your mother can roll a mean cigarette. He hits a mean backhand. 24. adj. (informal, often, childish) Difficult, tricky. This problem is mean! 25. adj. Having the mean (see noun below) as its value. 26. adj. (obsolete) Middling; intermediate; moderately good, tolerable. 27. n. (now chiefly in the plural) A method or course of action used to achieve some result. 28. n. (obsolete, in the singular) An intermediate step or intermediate steps. 29. n. Something which is intermediate or in the middle; an intermediate value or range of values; a medium. 30. n. (music, now historical) The middle part of three-part polyphonic music; now specifically, the alto part in polyphonic music; an alto instrument. 31. n. (statistics) The average of a set of values, calculated by summing them together and dividing by the number of terms; the arithmetic mean. 32. n. (mathematics) Any function of multiple variables that satisfies certain properties and yields a number representative of its arguments; or, the number so yielded; a measure of central tendency. 33. n. (mathematics) Either of the two numbers in the middle of a conventionally presented proportion, as 2 and 3 in 1:2=3:6.