μέν

See also: μεν

Ancient Greek

Etymology

From Proto-Hellenic *hmén, from Proto-Indo-European *smé. Cognate with Sanskrit स्म (smá).

Pronunciation

(5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /mén/
(1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /men/
(4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /men/
(10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /men/
(15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /men/

Particle

μέν • (mén) (discourse particle)

on the one hand, while, whereas (often left untranslated)
(before other particles) accordingly, and so

Usage notes

The main instance of the word is used to show that the word or clause with which it is attached answers to a following word or clause introduced by δέ or another equivalent particle (the particle may often be implied).

Related terms

μήν (mḗn, “verily”)

Descendants

Greek: μεν (men)

“μέν”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
“μέν”, in Liddell & Scott (1889) An Intermediate Greek–English Lexicon, New York: Harper & Brothers
“μέν”, in Autenrieth, Georg (1891) A Homeric Dictionary for Schools and Colleges, New York: Harper and Brothers
μέν in Bailly, Anatole (1935) Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette
μέν in Cunliffe, Richard J. (1924) A Lexicon of the Homeric Dialect: Expanded Edition, Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, published 1963
“μέν”, in Slater, William J. (1969) Lexicon to Pindar, Berlin: Walter de Gruyter
G3303 in Strong, James (1979) Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance to the Bible