Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, An Intermediate Greek-English Lexicon

I.very, very much, exceedingly, Hom., etc.

1.strengthening the word with which it stands, μάλα πολλά very many, id=Hom.; μάλα πάντες, μ. πᾶσαι, μ. πάντα, all together, every one, id=Hom.; μάλ᾽ ἀσκηθής all unhurt, Od.; ἀβληχρὸς μάλα τοῖος so very weak, id=Od.:—so in attic, μάλα δὴ πρεσβύτης very old, Xen.; μ. γέ τινες ὀλίγοι Plat.:—so with Advs., πάγχυ μάλα and μάλα πάγχυ quite utterly, Il.; εὖ μάλα right well, Od.; μάλ᾽ αἰεί for ever and aye, Il.; ἄχρι μάλα κνέφαος until quite dark, Od.; μάλα διαμπερές right through, Il.:—so in attic, to express repeated action, μάλ᾽ αὖθις, μάλ᾽ αὖ Aesch., etc.:— with Verbs, μή με μάλ᾽ αἴνεε praise me not greatly, Il.; ἡ δὲ μάλ᾽ ἡνιόχευεν she drove carefully, Od., etc.

2.strengthening an assertion, εἰ μάλα μιν χόλος ἵκοι if wrath come on him ever so much, Hom.; so μάλα περ with a partic., μάλα περ μεμαώς though desiring never so much, Il.

3.in attic in answers, yes, certainly, exactly so, μάλα γε Plat., etc.; μ. τοι Xen., etc.; καὶ μ. δή id=Xen.

II.comp. μᾶλλον, more, Hom.; μᾶλλον τοῦ δέοντος more than is right, Plat., Xen., etc.; παντὸς μᾶλλον more than anything, i. e. most certainly, Plat.

2.denoting increase, more and more, still more, Od.; μᾶλλον μᾶλλον, Lat. magis magisque, Eur., Ar.

3.sometimes joined to a second comp., ῥηίτεροι μᾶλλον Il.; μᾶλλον ἆσσον Soph., etc.

4.μᾶλλον δέ, much more, but rather, πολλοί, μᾶλλον δὲ πάντες Dem.

5.in μᾶλλον ἢ οὐ, οὐ seems redundant, ἥκει ὁ Πέρσης οὐδὲν μᾶλλον ἐπ᾽ ἡμέας ἢ οὐ ἐπ᾽ ὑμέας the Persians have come not more against us, than against you, Hdt.; in this case μᾶλλον ἢ οὐ is preceded by another negat.

6.τὸ μ. καὶ ἧττον, a form of argument, which we call a fortiori, Arist.

III.Sup. μάλιστα, most, most of all, Hom., etc.; μάλιστα μέν . . , ἔπειτα δέ . . , first and above all . . , next . . , Soph.:— τί μάλιστα; what is the precise thing that you want? Plat.; ὡς or ὅτι μ., Lat. quam maxime, id=Plat.; ὅσον μ. Aesch.; ὡς μ. certainly, in answers, Plat.; ὡς δύναμαι μ. id=Plat.; μακρῷ μ. Hdt.

2.ἐς τὰ μάλιστα for the most part, mostly, id=Hdt.; so, τὰ μάλιστα Thuc., etc.; also, ἀνὴρ δόκιμος ὁμοῖα τῷ μ. as famous as he that is most [famous], Hdt.

b.ἐν τοῖς μ. especially, as much as any, Thuc., Plat.

3.μάλιστα may be added to a Sup., ἔχθιστος μάλιστα, μάλιστα φίλτατος Il.; μ. φίλτατος Eur.

4.with numbers, μάλιστα means about, Thuc., Xen., etc.; so, ἐς μέσον μάλιστα about the middle, Hdt.; ἥμισυ μ. Thuc., etc.

5.καὶ μάλιστα is used in answers, most certainly, Lat. vel maxime, Ar.; so, μ γε Soph.; μ. πάντων Ar.