Literary notes about mean (AI summary)
Writers have long exploited the ambiguity and richness of “mean” to convey a spectrum of ideas. In many instances, it operates as a marker of intent—characters often clarify what they intend to express, as when someone declares, “I mean” to underscore a point or correct a misinterpretation [1][2][3]. At the same time, “mean” functions as an adjective denoting modesty or even pejorative quality, suggesting inferiority or pettiness in descriptions of dress or character [4][5][6]. Additionally, its usage in earlier texts reveals a more technical or abstract sense, where it literally signifies definition or measurement, illustrating its evolution over time [7][8]. This versatility enriches dialogue and narrative, allowing authors to layer meaning and subtly comment on both personal intent and character traits.
- Just before we went out, she called me back and said, “Remember, dear, I’m the only one left—I mean, there’s no one to be hurt by what I do.
— from Cranford by Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell - If I were to wait three months it would make no difference; I shall not be more sure of what I mean than I am to-day.
— from The Portrait of a Lady — Volume 1 by Henry James - “If you mean that I had any idea with regard to Mr. Goodwood—!”
— from The Portrait of a Lady — Volume 1 by Henry James - Be not, of course, cast down at losing; but above all, be not eager at winning, as mean souls are.
— from Barry Lyndon by William Makepeace Thackeray - For the sake of concealment they were clad in mean clothing.
— from Heimskringla; Or, The Chronicle of the Kings of Norway by Snorri Sturluson - The only thing is that our mean house with its thatched roof is both so crammed and so filthy that how could you, sir, sit in it!"
— from Hung Lou Meng, or, the Dream of the Red Chamber, a Chinese Novel, Book I by Xueqin Cao - It came to mean ride; as in F. Q. i. 1. 1: "A gentle Knight was pricking on the plaine," etc.
— from The Lady of the Lake by Walter Scott - If experience be used in a loose sense to mean any given fact or consciousness in general, the condition of experience is merely immediacy.
— from The Life of Reason: The Phases of Human Progress by George Santayana
