meathán

Irish

Alternative forms

• mathán, meathach, meathánach, meitheán, miothán

Etymology

From Middle Irish methán.

Pronunciation

• (Ulster) IPA^(key): /ˈmahanˠ/, /ˈmahan̪ˠ/ (corresponding to the form mathán)

Noun

meathán m (genitive singular meatháin, nominative plural meatháin)

1. anything pliable
2. sucker (stem growing up from the roots of a plant), twig, sapling
3. splinter (fragment of material)

   Synonyms: scealp, scealpóg

4. (crafts) splint (in basketweaving)
5. weakling

   Synonyms: lagrachán, fágálach

Declension

Declension of meathán

First declension

Bare forms: Case Singular Plural Nominative meathán meatháin Vocative a mheatháin a mheathána Genitive meatháin meathán Dative meathán meatháin

Forms with the definite article: Case Singular Plural Nominative an meathán na meatháin Genitive an mheatháin na meathán Dative leis an meathán don mheathán leis na meatháin

Derived terms

• meathán mara (“sea rush”)
• meathán íochtair (“tiller (shoot of a plant)”)

Mutation

Irish mutation
Radical	Lenition	Eclipsis
meathán	mheathán	not applicable
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.

Further reading

• “meathán”, in Historical Irish Corpus, 1600–1926, Royal Irish Academy
• G. Toner, M. Ní Mhaonaigh, S. Arbuthnot, D. Wodtko, M.-L. Theuerkauf, editors (2019), “methán”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language
• Dinneen, Patrick S. (1904) “meathán”, in Foclóir Gaeḋilge agus Béarla, 1st edition, Dublin: Irish Texts Society, page 477
• Ó Dónaill, Niall (1977) “meathán”, in Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla, Dublin: An Gúm, →ISBN