mḫꜣ

Egyptian

Pronunciation

• (modern Egyptological) IPA^(key): /mɛxɑ/
  • Conventional anglicization: mekha

Etymology 1

Ultimately a derivation of ḫꜣj (“to measure”). Compare the noun mḫꜣt (“balance scales”), apparently formed with the nominalizing prefix m-, which suggests that this verb is probably a back-formation from the noun, as already put forward by Gardiner.

Verb

 3-lit.

1. (transitive) to bring (a balance scale) into equilibrium, to balance (scales) [Old Kingdom]
2. (transitive) to match, to equal [Middle Kingdom literature]
3. (transitive) to make (two things) equal or level, to counterpoise [New Kingdom]
4. (transitive) to level (the floor), to make level or flat [New Kingdom]
5. (transitive) to friendlily incline (one’s heart/mind) (+ n: to (someone)) [New Kingdom]
6. (transitive, with r) to adjust (one’s mouth) to (one’s bones) in the Opening of the Mouth ritual [Pyramid Texts]
7. (intransitive) to be perfectly balanced or (figuratively) right-acting [New Kingdom]
8. (intransitive, with n, Late Egyptian) to be like, to resemble (someone or something)

Inflection

Conjugation of mḫꜣ (triliteral / 3-lit. / 3rad.) — base stem: mḫꜣ, geminated stem: mḫꜣꜣ

infinitival forms imperative infinitive negatival complement complementary infinitive1 singular plural mḫꜣ mḫꜣw, mḫꜣ mḫꜣt mḫꜣ mḫꜣ ‘pseudoverbal’ forms stative stem periphrastic imperfective2 periphrastic prospective2 mḫꜣ ḥr mḫꜣ m mḫꜣ r mḫꜣ suffix conjugation aspect / mood active passive contingent aspect / mood active passive perfect mḫꜣ.n mḫꜣw, mḫꜣ consecutive mḫꜣ.jn active + .tj1, .tw2 active + .tj1, .tw2 terminative mḫꜣt perfective3 mḫꜣ active + .tj1, .tw2 obligative1 mḫꜣ.ḫr active + .tj1, .tw2 imperfective mḫꜣ active + .tj1, .tw2 prospective3 mḫꜣ mḫꜣꜣ potentialis1 mḫꜣ.kꜣ active + .tj1, .tw2 active + .tj1, .tw2 subjunctive mḫꜣ active + .tj1, .tw2 verbal adjectives aspect / mood relative (incl. nominal / emphatic) forms participles active passive active passive perfect mḫꜣ.n active + .tj1, .tw2 — — perfective mḫꜣ active + .tj1, .tw2 mḫꜣ mḫꜣ, mḫꜣw5, mḫꜣy5 imperfective mḫꜣ, mḫꜣy, mḫꜣw5 active + .tj1, .tw2 mḫꜣ, mḫꜣj6, mḫꜣy6 mḫꜣ, mḫꜣw5 prospective mḫꜣ, mḫꜣtj7 — mḫꜣtj4, mḫꜣt4 1 Used in Old Egyptian; archaic by Middle Egyptian. 2 Used mostly since Middle Egyptian. 3 Archaic or greatly restricted in usage by Middle Egyptian. The perfect has mostly taken over the functions of the perfective, and the subjunctive and periphrastic prospective have mostly replaced the prospective. 4 Declines using third-person suffix pronouns instead of adjectival endings: masculine .f/.fj, feminine .s/.sj, dual .sn/.snj, plural .sn. 5 Only in the masculine singular. 6 Only in the masculine. 7 Only in the feminine.

Alternative forms

Alternative hieroglyphic writings of mḫꜣ  

mḫꜣ	mḫꜣ	mḫꜣ	mḫꜣ	mḫꜣ	mḫꜣ
[Old Kingdom]	[since the Middle Kingdom]	[New Kingdom]	[New Kingdom]	[New Kingdom]	[Theban royal tombs]

Etymology 2

Verb

 3-lit.

1. (transitive) to tie up, to bind (people or captured birds) [Middle Kingdom literature and Late Egyptian]

Inflection

Conjugation of mḫꜣ (triliteral / 3-lit. / 3rad.) — base stem: mḫꜣ, geminated stem: mḫꜣꜣ

infinitival forms imperative infinitive negatival complement complementary infinitive1 singular plural mḫꜣ mḫꜣw, mḫꜣ mḫꜣt mḫꜣ mḫꜣ ‘pseudoverbal’ forms stative stem periphrastic imperfective2 periphrastic prospective2 mḫꜣ ḥr mḫꜣ m mḫꜣ r mḫꜣ suffix conjugation aspect / mood active passive contingent aspect / mood active passive perfect mḫꜣ.n mḫꜣw, mḫꜣ consecutive mḫꜣ.jn active + .tj1, .tw2 active + .tj1, .tw2 terminative mḫꜣt perfective3 mḫꜣ active + .tj1, .tw2 obligative1 mḫꜣ.ḫr active + .tj1, .tw2 imperfective mḫꜣ active + .tj1, .tw2 prospective3 mḫꜣ mḫꜣꜣ potentialis1 mḫꜣ.kꜣ active + .tj1, .tw2 active + .tj1, .tw2 subjunctive mḫꜣ active + .tj1, .tw2 verbal adjectives aspect / mood relative (incl. nominal / emphatic) forms participles active passive active passive perfect mḫꜣ.n active + .tj1, .tw2 — — perfective mḫꜣ active + .tj1, .tw2 mḫꜣ mḫꜣ, mḫꜣw5, mḫꜣy5 imperfective mḫꜣ, mḫꜣy, mḫꜣw5 active + .tj1, .tw2 mḫꜣ, mḫꜣj6, mḫꜣy6 mḫꜣ, mḫꜣw5 prospective mḫꜣ, mḫꜣtj7 — mḫꜣtj4, mḫꜣt4 1 Used in Old Egyptian; archaic by Middle Egyptian. 2 Used mostly since Middle Egyptian. 3 Archaic or greatly restricted in usage by Middle Egyptian. The perfect has mostly taken over the functions of the perfective, and the subjunctive and periphrastic prospective have mostly replaced the prospective. 4 Declines using third-person suffix pronouns instead of adjectival endings: masculine .f/.fj, feminine .s/.sj, dual .sn/.snj, plural .sn. 5 Only in the masculine singular. 6 Only in the masculine. 7 Only in the feminine.

Alternative forms

Alternative hieroglyphic writings of mḫꜣ  

mḫꜣj	mḫꜣ

Noun

 m

1. (Late Egyptian) binding rope
2. (Late Egyptian) part of a chariot: loop of rope, strap^?

Inflection

Declension of mḫꜣ (masculine)

singular	mḫꜣ
dual	mḫꜣwj
plural	mḫꜣw

Descendants

• Bohairic Coptic: ⲁⲙϣⲓ (amši)

Etymology 3

Noun

 m

1. (Late Egyptian) woodshed

Inflection

Declension of mḫꜣ (masculine)

singular	mḫꜣ
dual	mḫꜣwj
plural	mḫꜣw

Alternative forms

Alternative hieroglyphic writings of mḫꜣ  

mḫꜣw

Etymology 4

Noun

 m

1. (Late Egyptian) a unit by which figs are counted, perhaps a wreath of figs

Inflection

Declension of mḫꜣ (masculine)

singular	mḫꜣ
dual	mḫꜣwj
plural	mḫꜣw

References

• “mḫꜣ (lemma ID 74230)”, “mḫꜣ (lemma ID 74240)”, “mḫꜣ (lemma ID 74280)”, “mḫꜣ (lemma ID 74260)”, and “mḫꜣ (lemma ID 74250)”, in Thesaurus Linguae Aegyptiae‎^[1], Corpus issue 18, Web app version 2.1.5, Tonio Sebastian Richter & Daniel A. Werning by order of the Berlin-Brandenburgische Akademie der Wissenschaften and Hans-Werner Fischer-Elfert & Peter Dils by order of the Sächsische Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Leipzig, 2004–26 July 2023
• Erman, Adolf, Grapow, Hermann (1928) Wörterbuch der ägyptischen Sprache‎^[2], volume 2, Berlin: Akademie-Verlag, →ISBN, pages 130.1–130.6, 130.14–131.5
• Faulkner, Raymond Oliver (1962) A Concise Dictionary of Middle Egyptian, Oxford: Griffith Institute, →ISBN, page 115
• Gardiner, Alan (1916) Notes on the Story of Sinuhe, page 49