I. big, of bodily size: freq. of stature, “εἶδος. . μ. ἦν ὁράασθαι” Od.18.4; “κεῖτο μ. μεγαλωστί” Il.16.776; “ἠΰς τε μ. τε” Od.9. 508; φῶτα μέγαν καὶ καλόν ib.513; “καλή τε μεγάλη τε” 15.418; “κάρτα μεγάλη καὶ εὐειδής” Hdt.3.1; φύσιν τίν᾽ εἶχε φράζε; Answ. “μέγας” S.OT742.
b. full-grown, of age as shown by stature, “νῦν δ᾽ ὅτε δὴ μ. εἰμί” Od.2.314; “μήτε μέγαν μήτ᾽ οὖν νεαρῶν τινα” A.Ag.358 (anap.); later, elder of two persons of the same name, Wilcken Chr.305 (iii B. C.); “Σκιπίων ὁ μ.” Plb.18.35.9.
2. generally, vast, high, οὐρανός, ὄρος, πύργος, Il.1.497, 16.297, 6.386; wide, πέλαγος, λαῖτμα θαλάσσης, Od.3.179, 5.174; long, ἠϊών, αἰγιαλός, Il.12.31,2.210: sts. opp. “ὀλίγος, κῦμα οὔτε μέγ᾽ οὔτ᾽ ὀ.” Od.10.94; but usu. opp. μικρός or “σμικρός, πρὸς ἑαυτὸ ἕκαστον καὶ μ. καὶ σμικρόν” Anaxag. 3; “τὸ ἄπειρον ἐκ μεγάλου καὶ μικροῦ” Arist.Metaph.987b26, etc.
II. of quality or degree, great, mighty, freq. epith. of gods, “ὁ μ. Ζεύς” A. Supp.1052 (lyr.), etc.; μεγάλα θεά, of Demeter and Persephone, S. OC683 (lyr.); θεοὶ μεγάλοι, of the Cabiri, IG12(8).71 (Imbros), etc.; Μήτηρ μ., of Cybele, SIG1014.83 (Erythrae, iii B. C.), 1138.3 (Delos, ii B. C.); “Μήτηρ θεῶν μ.” OGI540.6 (Pessinus), etc.; “Ἴσιδος μ. μητρὸς θεῶν” PStrassb.81.14 (ii B.C.); “μ. ἡ Ἄρτεμις Ἐφεσίων” Act.Ap.19.28; τίς θεὸς μ. ὡς ὁ θεὸς ἡμῶν; LXX Ps.76(77).13; “ὁ μ. θεός” Ep.Tit.2.13; of men, “μ. ἠδὲ κραταιός” Od.18.382; “ὀλίγος καὶ μ.” Callin.1.17, etc.; μέγας ηὐξήθη rose to greatness, D.2.5; ἤρθη μ. ib.8; βασιλεὺς ὁ μ., i. e. the King of Persia, Hdt.1.188, etc. (θεῶν β. ὁ μ., of Zeus, Pi.O. 7.34); “βασιλεὺς μ.” A.Pers.24 (anap.); as a title of special monarchs, “Ἀρδιαῖος ὁ μ.” Pl.R.615c; “ὁ μ. Ἀλέξανδρος” Ath.1.3d; “ὁ μ. ἐπικληθεὶς Ἀντίοχος” Plb.4.2.7, etc.; “μ. φίλος” E.Med.549; “πλούτῳ τε κἀνδρείᾳ μ.” Id.Tr.674; “ἐπὶ μέγα ἦλθεν ἰσχύος” Th.2.97.
2. strong, of the elements, etc., ἄνεμος, λαῖλαψ, Ζέφυρος, Od.19.200, 12.408, 14.458; of properties, passions, qualities, feelings, etc., of men, θάρσος, πένθος, ποθή, etc., 9.381, Il.1.254, 11.471, etc.; “ἀρετή” Od.24.193, Pi. O.8.5; “θυμός” Il.9.496, E.Or.702; “κλέος” Il.6.446; “ἄχος” 9.9; “πυρετός” Ev.Luc.4.38 (incorrect acc. to Gal.7.275); ἡ μ. νοῦσος epilepsy, Hp. Epid.6.6.5, cf. Gal.17(2).341.
3. of sounds, great, loud, ἀλαλητός, ἰαχή, πάταγος, ὀρυμαγδός, Il.12.138, 15.384, 21.9, 256; θόρυβοι, κωκυτός, S.Aj.142 (anap.), E.Med.1176; “οὐκ ἔστι ὅκως τι νεῖκος ἔσται ἢ μέγα ἢ σμικρόν” Hdt.3.62; “μὴ φώνει μέγα” S.Ph.574.
4. generally, great, mighty, “ὅρκος” Il.19.113; ὄλβος, τιμά, Pi.O.1.56, P.4.148; μ. λόγος, μῦθος, a great story, rumour, A.Pr.732, S.Aj.226 (lyr.); ἐρώτημα a big, i. e. difficult, question, Pl.Euthd.275d, Hp.Ma. 287b; weighty, important, “τόδε μεῖζον” Od.16.291; μέγα ποιέεσθαί τι to esteem of great importance, Hdt.3.42, cf. 9.111; “μέγα γενέσθαι εἴς τι” X.HG7.5.6; “μ. ὑπάρχειν πρός τι” Id.Mem.2.3.4; “μέγα διαφέρειν εἴς τι” Pl.Lg.78oc; οὐκ ἂν εἴη παρὰ μέγα τὸ δικολογεῖν not of great importance, Phld.Rh.2.85 S.; τὸ δὲ μέγιστον and what is most important, Th.4.70, cf. 1.142; οἱ μέγιστοι καιροί the most pressing emergencies, D.20.44; μ. ὠνησάμενοι χρημάτων for large sums, Plb. 4.50.3, etc.
5. with a bad sense, over-great, μέγα εἰπεῖν to speak big, and so provoke divine wrath, Od.22.288; “λίην μέγα εἶπες” 3.227, 16.243; “μέγα ἔργον” 3.261, Pi.N.10.64; “ἔργων μ.” A.Ag.1546 (anap.); “ὠμὸν τὸ βούλευμα καὶ μ.” Th.3.36; ἔπος μ., μ. λόγοι, S.Aj. 423 (lyr.), Ant.1350 (anap.); μ. γλῶσσα ib.127 (anap.); “μηδὲν μέγ᾽ εἴπῃς” Id.Aj.386; “μὴ μέγα λέγε” Pl.Phd.95b; “μὴ μεγάλα λίαν λέγε” Ar.Ra.835; “μέγα φρονεῖν” S.OT1078, E.Hipp.6; “μεγάλα φρονεῖν” Ar.Ach.988; μεγάλα, μεῖζον ἢ δικαίως πνεῖν, E.Andr.189, A.Ag.376 (lyr.); “μέγα τι παθεῖν” X.An.5.8.17; “μὴ μέγα λέγων μεῖζον πάθῃς” E. HF1244.
7. of days, long, Gal.12.714.
B. Adv. μεγάλως [α^] greatly, mightily, Od.16.432, Hes.Th. 429, Hdt.1.16,30, al., X.Cyr.8.2.10, Parth.28.1, etc.; strengthd., “μάλα μ.” Il.17.723; “δμαθέντες μ.” A.Pers.907 (lyr.); with Adjs., Hdt. 1.4, 7.190.
II. more freq. neut. sg. μέγα as Adv., very much, exceedingly, μ. χαῖρε all hail!, v. l. for μάλα in Od.24.402; esp. with Verbs expressing strong feeling, “μ. κεν κεχαροίατο” Il.1.256; “μ. κήδεται” 2.27, etc.: with Verbs expressing power, might, “μ. πάντων . . κρατέει” 1.78; “ὃς μ. πάντων. . ἤνασσε” 10.32; “πατρὸς μ. δυναμένοιο” Od.1.276, cf. Hom.Epigr.15.1, A.Eu.950 (anap.), E.Hel.1358 (lyr.), Ar.Ra.141, Pl.R.366a; “μ. δύνασθαι παρά τινι” Th.2.29; “πλουτέειν μ.” Hdt.1.32; or those expressing sound, loudly, μ. ἰάχειν, ἀῧσαι, βοῆσαι, εὔξασθαι, ἀμβῶσαι, Il.2.333, 14.147, 17.334, Od.17.239, Hdt.1.8 (also pl., “μεγάλ᾽ εὔχετο” Il.1.450; μ. αὐδήσαντος, μ. ἤπυεν, Od.4.505, 9.399): strengthd., “μάλα μ.” Il.15.321; “μ. δ᾽ ἔβραχε φήγινος ἄξων” 5.838, etc.: so in Trag. with all kinds of Verbs, μ. στένειν, σθένειν, χλίειν, A.Ag.711 (lyr.), 938, Ch.137: also in pl., “μεγάλα. . δυστυχεῖς” Id.Eu.791 (lyr.).
2. of Space, far, “μέγα προθορών” Il.14.363; ἄνευθε μέγα far away, 22.88; “οὐκ ἂν μέγα τι τῆς ἀληθείας παρεξέλθοις” Pl.Phlb.66b.
3. with Adjs., as μέγ᾽ ἔξοχος, μέγα νήπιος, Il.2.480, 16.46; μ. νήπιε Orac. ap. Hdt.1.85; “μ. πλούσιος” Id.1.32, 7.190; “ὦ μέγ᾽ εὔδαιμον κόρη” A.Pr.647: with Comp. and Sup., by far, μέγ᾽ ἀμείνονες, ἄριστος, φέρτατος, Il.4.405, 2.82, 16.21.
1. Comp. μείζων, ον, gen. ονος, Ep., Att. (also Delph., SIG246 H260 (iv B. C.)); Ion., Arc., Dor., Aeol. μέζων, ον, Heraclit. 25, Hp.Acut.44, Hdt.1.26, IG7.235.16 (Oropus), 5(2).3.18 (Tegea), Epich.62 (also early Att., IG12.22.65, but [με] ίζων ib.6.93, by analogy of ὀλείζων ib.76,95); dat. pl. “μεζόνεσσι” Diotog. ap. Stob.4.7.62: written μέσδων in Sapph.Supp.7.6, Plu.Lyc.19: cf. μέττον: μεῖζον, Hsch. (dub.); later “μειζότερος” 3 Ep.Jo.4 (used as title, elder, POxy. 943.3 (vi A. D.), etc.); “μειζονώτερος” A.Fr.434:—greater, longer, taller, Il.3.168, 9.202, etc.; freq. also, too great, “γέρας” Pl.Sph.231a; Μηνόφιλος μείζων M. the elder, Ostr.Bodl.vC 2 (ii A. D.); as title, μειζων κώμης headman of a village, POxy.1626.5 (iv A. D.), etc.: generally, the higher authority, PLond.2.214.22 (iii A. D.), POxy.1204.17 (pl., iii A. D.); οὔτε μεῖζον οὔτε ἔλαττον, a strong form of denial, nothing whatever, D.H.Comp.4; “οὐδαμὰ προὔφηνεν οὔτε μείζον᾽ οὔτ᾽ ἐλάττονα” S.Tr.324. Adv. “μειζόνως” E.Hec.1121, Th.1.130, X.Cyn.13.3, Isoc.9.21, etc.; Ion. “μεζόνως” Hdt.3.128, Herod.4.80, etc.: neut. as Adv., “μεῖζον σθένειν” S.Ph.456, E.Supp.216; “μ. ἰσχύειν” D.Ep.3.28; “ἐπὶ μ. ἔρχεται” S.Ph.259.
2. Sup. μέγιστος, η, ον, Il.2.412, etc.: neut. as Adv., “μέγιστον ἴσχυσε” S.Aj.502; δυνάμενος μ., c. gen., Hdt.7.5, 9.9: with another Sup., “μέγιστον ἐχθίστη” E.Med.1323: in pl., “χαῖρ᾽ ὡς μέγιστα” S.Ph.462; “θάλλει μ.” Id.OC700 (lyr.); “τὰ μέγιστ᾽ ἐτιμάθης” Id.OT1203 (lyr.); ἐς μέγιστον ib.521; “ἐς τὰ μ.” Hdt.8.111:—late Sup. “μεγιστότατος” PLond.1.130.49 (i/ii A. D.). (Cf. Skt. majmán- 'greatness', Lat. magnus, Goth. mikils 'great'.)
