meretirija

Grammatical information: f.

Meaning: `handmill, mill, (Od.), (the nether) millstone', metaph. `molar' (LXX), `knee-cap, hard formation in a woman's womb' (Hp., Arist.).

Other forms: hell. a. late also μύλος m. (LXX, NT, Str.; cf. Fraenkel Nom. ag. 2,58)

Compounds: Compp., e.g. μυλο-ειδής `as a millstone' (H 270), μυλή-φατος `ground by a mill' (β 355, A. R., Lyc.; after ἀρηΐ-φατος a.o.; diff. Chantraine Sprache 1, 145); χειρο-μύλη `handmill' (X.), also - μυλος ( Edict. Diocl.), - μυλον (Cass. Fel.; cf. on βούτυρον); dimin. - μύλιον (Dsc., pap.).

Derivatives: A. Subst. 1. μύλαξ, - ακος m. `millstone, big rounded stone' (M161, AP, Opp.), cf. λίθαξ a.o. (Chantraine Form. 379). 2. From this with ρ-suffix μύλακρος m. `millstone' (Alcm.), pl. = γομφίοι ὀδόντες (H.); f. - ακρίς, - ίδος as attr. of λᾶας `millstone' (Alex. Aet.), as subst. `cockroach', also (influenced by ἀκρίς) `locust' (Ar. Fr. 583, Poll.); also - αβρίς `id.' (Pl. Com., Poll.; prob. after ἁβρός, ἅβρα), - ηθρίς `id.' (Poll.). 3. μυλών, - ῶνος m. `millhouse, mill' (Att.) with - ωνικός `miller' (pap.), - ώνιον dimin. (gloss.). 4. μυλωθρός m. `miller' (Att., Arist.); on the formation which is not quite clear cf. Chantraine Form. 373; from this - ωθρίς f. `milleress' name of a comedy of Eubulos; - ωθρικός `belonging to a miller' (Plu.), - ωθρέω `grind' (Men.); backformation - ωθρον = μυλών (Phot.)?; also - ωθριαῖοι adjunct of καλυπ-τῆρες (= `roof-tiles'?; Delos II^a, reading uncertain); beside it μυλωρός `miller' (Aesop., Poll.), after πυλωρός a.o. 5. μυλάριον dimin. `small handmill' (pap.). 6. μυλεύς m. surn. of Zeus as keeper of mills (Lyc.; Bosshardt 67). 7. μυλίας m. ( λίθος) `millstone, stone, from which millstones were made' (Pl., Arist., Str.; Chantraine Form. 96). 8. μυλίτης m. ( λίθος, ὀδούς) `millstone, molar' (Gal.). 9. Μυλόεις ποταμὸς Άρκαδίας H.; s. Krahe Beitr. z. Namenforsch. 2. 233. -- B. Adj., all rare and late: 1. μύλ-ιος `belonging to a mill' (Procop.); 2. μυλ-ικός `id.' (Ev. Luk., Gal.); 3. - ινος `consisting of millstones' (Smyrna); 4. - αῖος `working in a mill' (AP), - αῖον n. `handmill' (pap.); 5. - ιαῖοι ὀδόντες `molars' (medic.); 6. - όεις `consisting of a millstone, belonging to a mill' (Nic., Nonn.); 7. - ητικη ἔμπλαστρος `remedy for toothache' (Gal.). -- C. Verbs, all rare. 1. μυλιάω only in ptc. μῡλιόωντες `gnashing with the teeth' (Hes. Op. 530; on - ιάω Schwyzer 732); 2. μυλόομαι `be hardened, cicatrized' (Hp.). -- On itself stands μύλλω = βινέω (Theoc. 4,58) with μυλ(λ)άς f. `whore' (Phot., Suid.), μυλλός m. `cake in the form of the pudenda muliebria' (Ath. 14, 647 a; Sicilian).

Origin: IE [Indo-European] [716] * melh₁- `grind'

Etymology: The primary verbal noun μύλη (accent as e.g. μάχη) with the secondarily arising μύλος (after λίθος or ὄνος ἀλέτης?) like the primary yot-present μύλλω deviate through the υ-vowel from the other cognate words for `grind', which show an e: o-vocalism: Celt., OIr. melim, Slav., e.g. OCS meljǫ (IE * mel-); Germ., e.g. Goth. malan, Lith. malù, Hitt. 3. sg. mallai (IE * mol-); Lat. molō, on itself ambiguous, prob. from * melō like OIr. melim. In μυλ- we must assume a zero- [or reduced] grade variant (ml̥-; m<sub>e</sub>l-?) (Schwyzer 351). With μύλλω from *ml̥-i̯ō agree in Germ. OHG muljan, OWNo. mylia `crush'; on the meaning s. below, on the υ -vowel cf. φύλλον against Lat. folium. A weak grade appears also in Welsh malu `grind', as well as in Arm. malem `crush'. An u-vowel could also be found in the reduplicated Arm. ml-ml-em `rub'; (it could however also be drived from lengthened grade mēl- or mōl). The technical meaning `grind' might have been specialized from the general `rub'. As verbal noun μύλη has in Greek the character of an archaism, while μύλλω, which was degraded to an obscene meaning, was further replaced by the also old ἀλέω (s.v. and Porzig Gliederung 156), which was limited to the eastern languages. -- On itself stands μάλευρον (s.v.); remarkable and\/but suspect is the e-vowel of Myc. mereuro `meal' and meretirija `milleresses'. -- More forms in WP. 2, 284ff., Pok. 716f., W.-Hofmann and Ernout-Meillet s. molō, Fraenkel Wb. s. málti.

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