Wiktionary

mess

See also: Mess

English

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English Wikipedia has an article on:
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Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /mɛs/
  • Audio (US):(file)
  • Rhymes: -ɛs

Etymology 1

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Perhaps a corruption of Middle English mesh (“mash”), compare muss, or derived from Etymology 2 "mixed foods, as for animals". Compare also Old English mes (“dung, excrement”).

Noun

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mess (countable and uncountable, plural messes)

  2. a thing or group of things in a disagreeable, disorganised, or dirty state; hence a bad situation
    • 2006 Feb. 3, Graham Linehan, The IT Crowd, Season 1, Episode 4:
      No, look, I know that the place looks like a bit of a mess but it's actually a very delicate ecosystem. Everything is connected. It's like the rainforest. You change one thing, even the tiniest bit, and the whooole rainforest dies. You don't want the rainforest to die, do ya?
    Synonyms: disorder; see also Thesaurus:disorder
    He made a mess of it.
    My bedroom is such a mess; I need to tidy up.
  3. (colloquial) a large quantity or number
    My boss dumped a whole mess of projects on my desk today.
    (Northern England, Appalachia) a sufficient quantity of food for a meal
    She brought back a mess of fish to fix for supper.
  4. (euphemistic) excrement.
    There was dog mess all along the street.
    Did you hear that? It scared the mess out of me.
  5. (figuratively) a person in a state of (especially emotional) turmoil or disarray; an emotional wreck
    Between the pain and the depression, I'm a mess.
    He's been a mess and a half ever since you excommunicated him.
    • 2009, Andrew Frampton, Steve Diamond, “According to You”, in Believe, performed by Orianthi:
      I'm a mess in a dress, can't show up on time even if it would save my life. According to you.
Translations
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Verb

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mess (third-person singular simple present messes, present participle messing, simple past and past participle messed)

  1. (transitive, often with "up") To make untidy or dirty.
    1. To make soiled by defecating.
      • 2000 March 12, Tom Armstrong, Marvin (comic):
        It seems like all you do is cry, eat, and mess your diapers!
    2. To make soiled by ejaculating.
  2. (transitive, often with "up") To throw into disorder or to ruin.
    • Charles Dickens, quoted in: 1875, John Forster, The Life of Charles Dickens
      Yet I was not sorry that the creature found the loophole for escape. The officers had taken him illegally without any warrant; and really they messed it all through, quite facetiously.
    • 1905, Arthur Colton, The Belted Seas‎[1], page 76:
      But it wasn't right to be messing another man's sleep with tidal waves that didn't belong to the other man.
  3. (intransitive) To interfere.
    This doesn't concern you. Don't mess.
Translations
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Derived terms

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terms derived from "mess" (etymology 1)

Etymology 2

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    From Middle English mes, partly from Old English mēse, mēose (“table”), a vernacular loan from Latin/Late Latin mē(n)sa (“table; meal”); and partly from Old French mes, Late Latin missum, from mittō (“to put, place (e.g. on the table)”). See mission, and compare Mass (“religious service”).

    Noun

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    mess (plural messes)

    2. (obsolete) Mass; a church service.
    4. (archaic) A quantity of food set on a table at one time; provision of food for a person or party for one meal; also, the food given to an animal at one time.
      • c. 1555, Hugh Latimer, letter to one in prison for the profession of the Gospel
        a mess of pottage
      • a. 1645, John Milton, “L’Allegro”, in Poems of Mr. John Milton, […], London: […] Ruth Raworth for Humphrey Mosely, […], published 1646, →OCLC:
        At their savoury dinner set / Of herbs and other country messes.
      • 1903, Henry Yule, Arthur Burnell, Hobson-Jobson:
        [Curry] consists of meat, fish, fruit, or vegetables, cooked with a quantity of bruised spices and turmeric […] ; and a little of this gives a flavour to a large mess of rice.
    6. (collective) A number of persons who eat together, and for whom food is prepared in common, especially military personnel who eat at the same table.
      the wardroom mess
    8. A building or room in which mess is eaten.
      • 1956, Anthony Burgess, Time for a Tiger (The Malayan Trilogy), published 1972, page 20:
        The police mess had formerly been a maternity home for the wives of the Sultans of the state. Faded and tatty, peeling, floorboards eaten and unpolished, its philoprogenitive glory was a memory only.
    9. (India) a type of restaurant characterized by homely-style cooking and food.
    10. A set of four (from the old practice of dividing companies into sets of four at dinner).
    11. (US) The milk given by a cow at one milking.
    12. (collective) A group of iguanas.
      Synonym: slaughter
    13. (cooking) A dessert of fruit and cream, similar to a fool.
      • 1913, Pearson's Magazine, volume 36, part 2, page 373:
        Eton is renowned for its "messes," and "strawberry mess" is Empress of them all, with raspberry mess as a very good second. It does not at all convey the joys of a "mess" to say that it consists of iced fruit and cream, and somewhat resembles a "fool." It is a thing apart, and should be approached with bated breath and unimpaired capacity.
      • 1916, Edward Frederic Benson, David Blaize, page 284:
        "I'll stand you both strawberry mess." It was perfectly impossible for David not to feel elated at sitting down to strawberry-mess with two members of the eleven, in the full light of day, and in sight of the school generally […]
      • 2014, Lindsey Bareham, Just One Pot:
        Eton mess, for example, which is another name for strawberry fool, links the name of a famous public school with disorder or the army slang for a meal, [...] One friend remembered a banana mess of mashed banana with two scoops of ice cream and loads of cream, and thought the strawberry version something that might be served at the 4th June College picnic, [...]
      • 2015, Darra Goldstein, Sidney Mintz, Michael Krondl, Laura Mason, The Oxford Companion to Sugar and Sweets, Oxford University Press, USA, →ISBN, page 243:
        Similar desserts [to Eton Mess] include Lancing Mess (made with bananas), served at Lancing College in Sussex, and Clare College Mush […]
      • 2020, Nigel Napier-Andrews, Gentleman's Portion: The Cookbook:
        One Old Etonian rages that at school the dessert was simply called 'strawberry mess' and was very popular in the tuck shop. It is only outside Eton that the school's name has been added. A similar 'banana mess' is credited to School in Sussex, […]
    Derived terms
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    Descendants
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    • → Portuguese: messe
    Translations
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    Further reading
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    Verb

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    mess (third-person singular simple present messes, present participle messing, simple past and past participle messed)

    1. (intransitive) To take meals with a mess.
    2. (intransitive) To belong to a mess.
    3. (intransitive) To eat (with others).
      • 1836, George Simpson & al., HBC Standing Rules and Regulations, §18:
        Resolved 18. That no Guide or Interpreter whether at the Factory Depot or Inland be permitted to mess with Commissioned Gentlemen or Clerks in charge of Posts; but while at the Depot they will be allowed per Week 4 days ordinary rations...
      I mess with the wardroom officers.
    4. (transitive) To supply with a mess.

    Further reading

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    References

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    Anagrams

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    Hungarian

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    Alternative forms

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    Etymology

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    metsz +‎ -j (personal suffix)

    Pronunciation

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    Verb

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    mess

    1. second-person singular subjunctive present indefinite of metsz

    Maltese

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    Root
    m-s-s
    3 terms

    Pronunciation

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    Etymology 1

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      From Arabic مَسَّ (massa).

      Verb

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      mess (imperfect jmiss, past participle mimsus, verbal noun mess) (transitive)

      1. to touch
        • 2022, Nadia Mifsud, meta tinfetaq il-folla, Ede Books, →ISBN:
          f’żarbun ġa ssikkat. irkiekel dahri
          tat-terrakotta － ’kk tmisshom,
          isiru frak. dil-belt tentakli waħedha －
          għoddha qalftitni fatat.
          (please add an English translation of this quotation)
      2. (figurative) to touch, to affect
      3. (auxiliary) Used to indicate duty or obligation: ought; should
        Missek għedtli. ― You should have told me.
      4. (auxiliary) Used in conditional or counterfactual statements to show relief that one didn't do something that would have led to a bad or regrettable result.
      Conjugation
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      Conjugation of mess (Form I)
      positive forms
      singular plural
      1st person 2nd person 3rd person 1st person 2nd person 3rd person
      perfect m messejt messejt mess messejna messejtu messew
      f messet
      imperfect m mmiss tmiss jmiss mmissu tmissu jmissu
      f tmiss
      imperative miss missu
      negative forms
      singular plural
      1st person 2nd person 3rd person 1st person 2nd person 3rd person
      perfect m messejtx messejtx messx messejniex messejtux messewx
      f messitx
      imperfect m mmissx tmissx jmissx mmissux tmissux jmissux
      f tmissx
      imperative tmissx tmissux

      Etymology 2

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        From Arabic مَسّ (mass).

        Noun

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        mess m (instance noun messa)

        1. verbal noun of mess:
          1. touch

        Manx

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        Etymology

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        From Old Irish mess (“nuts”), from Proto-Celtic *messus (“acorn”). Cognate with Irish meas (“fruit, mast”).

        Pronunciation

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        Noun

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        mess m (genitive singular mess, plural messyn)

        1. (botany) fruit

        Derived terms

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        Mutation

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        Mutation of mess
        radical lenition eclipsis
        mess vess unchanged

        Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in standard Manx.
        All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.

        Norwegian Bokmål

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        Verb

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        mess

        1. imperative of messe

        Old Irish

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        Alternative forms

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        Pronunciation

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        Etymology 1

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          From Proto-Celtic *messus (“judgement”), from Proto-Indo-European *med-.

          Noun

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          mess m (genitive messa, nominative plural mesai)

          1. verbal noun of midithir
          2. judgment

          For quotations using this term, see Citations:mess.

          Declension
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          Masculine u-stem
          singular dual plural
          nominative mess messL messaeH, mesai
          vocative mess messL messu
          accusative messN messL messu
          genitive messoH, messaH messoL, messaL messaeN
          dative messL messaib messaib
          Initial mutations of a following adjective:
          • H = triggers aspiration
          • L = triggers lenition
          • N = triggers nasalization
          Derived terms
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          Descendants
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          Further reading

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          Etymology 2

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            From Proto-Celtic *messus (“acorn”).

            Noun

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            mess m (genitive messa)

            1. (collective) tree nuts, mast
            Descendants
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            Further reading

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            Mutation

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            Mutation of mess
            radical lenition nasalization
            mess
            also mmess in h-prothesis environments            		 mess
            pronounced with /β̃ʲ-/            		 mess
            also mmess

            Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in Old Irish.
            All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.

            Swedish

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            Etymology

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            Clipping of sms.

            Pronunciation

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            Noun

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            mess n

            1. (colloquial) text message
              Synonym: sms

            Declension

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            Declension of mess
            nominative genitive
            singular indefinite mess mess
            definite messet messets
            plural indefinite mess mess
            definite messen messens

            Derived terms

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            References

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            Vilamovian

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            Etymology

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            From Middle High German messinc, from Proto-Germanic *masjinga-, of uncertain ultimate origin. Perhaps derived from Ancient Greek Μοσσύνοικοι (Mossúnoikoi, “Mossynoeci”), the name of an ancient people connected with metallurgy; or alternatively from Latin massa (“lump (of metal)”).

            Noun

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            mess n

            1. brass
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