Definition of MEAN (original) (raw)

Examples of mean in a Sentence

Verb

The season of backyard barbecues and lakeside cookouts is at hand, which in most parts of the country means an orgy of grilled steaks, hamburgers and hot dogs lasting until Labor Day and beyond. —R. W. Apple, Jr., New York Times, 5 June 2002 Even the water in the cave was free from surface contamination … which meant that all the water now in Lechugilla percolated into the cave before the widespread nuclear bomb testing of the 1940s … —Jon Krakauer, Air & Space, October/November 1995 Home meant my father, with kind eyes, songs, and tense recitations for my brother and myself. —Gwendolyn Brooks, Booklist, 15 Oct. 1993

The word meant one thing in Shakespeare's day, but it means something else now. Red means “stop” and green means “go.” Can you tell me what my dream means? What was meant by the poet? Don't distort what she meant by taking her words out of context. He's very ambitious, and I mean that as a compliment. It's a very easy question. Anyone, and I mean anyone, should be able to answer it. She's not getting any thinner, if you know what I mean. She says she didn't mean anything by what she did. I don't trust him. He means no good. Adjective (1)

For thirty years he had been a ruthless litigator, the meanest, nastiest, and without a doubt one of the most effective courtroom brawlers in Chicago. —John Grisham, The Chamber, 1995 … the streets of Spanish Harlem are meaner than when he left them, and they're pulling him back in. —Peter Travers, Rolling Stone, 9 Dec. 1993 … what you discover is the one with the tail was old mean landlord Mr. prosperous Prospero who wielded without thought of God or man the merry old cat-o'-nine-tails … —Darryl Pinckney, Times Literary Supplement, 23 Aug. 1991 Creighton Abrams was a tanker, according to George Patton the meanest tanker the Germans had faced in the whole U.S. Third Army, and he had a temper that matched the fearsome machines he loved. —Neil Sheehan, A Bright Shining Lie, 1988

Alexander Hamilton seems to have had feelings of inferiority because of his mean origins a mean child who hoarded all her toys a mean, embittered old woman who wanted company for her misery a mean trick to play on a trusting person it's no mean feat to memorize that long poem I'm a mean dancer, so you could do worse than go to the prom with me he worked hard to escape the mean neighborhood of his youth that was no mean stunt to pull off, especially with so little advance preparation Adjective (2)

for the state of Florida, what is the mean number of sunny days per month? Noun

Take all these temperatures and calculate their mean. trying to find a golden mean between doing too little and doing too much

Recent Examples on the Web

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Van de Ven’s presence will mean Tottenham can afford to push up high knowing the Dutchman has the explosive pace to track back and sweep up Brentford’s attacks. —Oli Gamp, The Athletic, 2 Feb. 2025 The representatives from the city also explained that the fund is not a traditional savings account, meaning funds contributed to it would not bear interest. —Molly Morrow, Chicago Tribune, 1 Feb. 2025

Charisma Carpenter isn’t defending her Buffy the Vampire Slayer character’s mean spirit! —Latoya Gayle, People.com, 1 Feb. 2025 According to the research, the mean return for repeat sale pairs of artworks last spring was almost zero, the lowest since 2000. —George Nelson, ARTnews.com, 31 Jan. 2025

How To Die Alone followed Mel (Rothwell), a broke, fat, Black JFK airport employee who’s never been in love and forgotten how to dream, until an accidental brush with death catapults her on a journey to finally take flight and start living by any means necessary. —Denise Petski, Deadline, 4 Feb. 2025 The law has been debated and considered for years as a means, according to the government, to right historic wrongs. —Gerald Imray, Los Angeles Times, 3 Feb. 2025 See all Example Sentences for mean