mē´], negative used in prohibitions):—not, the negative of thewillandthought, asοὐoffactandstatement;μήrejects,οὐdenies;μήis relative,οὐabsolute;μήsubjective,οὐobjective. (A few examples ofμηδέandμηδείςhave been included.)
A. in INDEPENDENT sentences, used in expressions ofwillorwish, command, entreaty, warning,
: rarely, if ever, with 2 pers.pres. subj., μὴ κάμνῃς
E. IA 1143
(leg.κάμῃς); 3 pers.,μή τις οἴηται,
= μὴ οἰώμεθα , Pl. Lg. 861e : also with the hortativesubj.used to supply the 1 pers. of the imper.,pres. μὴ ἴομεν(͂ ἴωμεν) Il. 12.216 , etc.; μὴ διώκωμεν
Hdt. 8.109
, etc.:aor.
μὴ πάθωμεν
X. Cyr. 1.5.11
, etc.: rarely with1 sg., μή σε . . κιχείω
Il. 1.26
, cf. 21.475 , 22.123 , S. OC 174 (anap.).
b. withpres.oraor. subj.in a warning or statement of fear,μὴ . . γένησθε take care you do
not become, Il. 5.487 ;μὴ . . ὑφαίνῃσιν I fear . . may prove to be weaving, Od. 5.356 ; αἷμα μὴ σοῖς ἐξομόρξωμαι πέπλοις
E. HF 1399
: in Att. Prose, to make a polite suggestion of apprehension or hesitation,perhaps, μὴ ἀγροικότερον ᾖ τὸ ἀληθὲς εἰπεῖν
Pl. Grg. 462e
, cf. Tht. 188d , Arist. Pol. 1291a8 , al.: in later Greek the ind. is found, μὴ ἡ ἔννοια ἡμῶν . . ἀντιλαμβάνεται
2. in the protasis of conditional sentences, v. εἰ (for the exceptions v. οὐ ), and with temporal conjunctions used conditionally, v. ἐπειδάν, ὅταν, ὅτε , etc.
(lyr.): with Art. in gen.,ἔχειν τοῦ μή. . X. An. 3.5.71 ;ἐμποδὼν γίγνεσθαι τοῦ μή. . Id. Cyr. 2.4.23 .
c. after Verbs of saying and thinking which involve an action of will, as in those signifying toswear, aver, believe, and thelike; so afterὄμνυμι, Il. 9.133 , Od. 5.179 , Hdt. 1.165 , 2.179 , Ar. V. 1047 , etc.; μαρτυρῶ
Lys. 7.11
, D. 45.15 , etc.; ὁμολογῶ
Pl. Prt. 336b
, Smp. 202b , cf. Phd. 93d , etc.; ἐγγυῶμαι
Pi. O. 11(10).18
, Pl. Prt. 336d ; πέπεισμαι
Id. Ap. 37a
, etc.; πιστεύω
And. 1.2
, X. An. 1.9.8 , etc.: occasionally with other Verbs, φημί
: very freq. in later Gr., Ev.Matt. 2.12 , Luc. Peregr. 44 , etc.
6. with thepart., when it can be resolved into a conditional clause,μὴ ἐνείκας,
= εἰ μὴ ἤνεικε , Hdt. 4.64 ;μὴ θέλων,
= εἰ μὴ θέλεις , A. Pr. 504 ;μὴ δολώσαντος θεοῦ,
= εἰ μὴ ἐδόλωσε , Id. Ag. 273 ;μὴ δρῶν,
= εἰ μὴ δρῴην , S. OT 77 , etc.: in a general or characteristic sense,δίδασκέ με ὡς μὴ εἰδότα,= ut qui nihil sciam, Id. OC 1155 , cf. Ant. 1063 , 1064 ;τίς πρὸς ἀνδρὸς μὴ βλέποντος ἄρκεσις;one whoseesnot, Id. OC 73 : in this signf. freq. with the Art., ὁ μὴ λεύσσων
8. after Verbs expressingfearorapprehension(cf.μὴ οὐ):
a. when the thing feared isfut., mostly withsubj.: withpres. subj.,δεινῶς ἀθυμῶ μὴ βλέπων ὁ μάντις ᾖ shall proveto be. . , S. OT 747 , cf. Ant. 1113 ; ὅρα μὴ κυβεύῃς
Pl. Prt. 314a
: more freq. withaor., δείδοικα . . μή σε παρείπῃ
Il. 1.555
, cf. 9.244 , 13.745 : withpf.,shall prove to have been, δέδοικα μὴ περαιτέρω πεπραγμέν' ᾖ μοι
S. Tr. 663
, cf. Ph. 494 , Hdt. 3.119 , 4.140 , etc.: less freq. withfut.ind., X. Cyr. 2.3.6 , Ar. Ec. 488 , Pl. Phlb. 13a : with opt. according to the sequence of moods and tenses:pres.opt., S. Tr. 482 , X. An. 1.10.9 :aor., Od. 11.634 , etc.:pf., X. Cyr. 1.3.10 : withfut.opt. in oratio obliqua, Id. HG 6.4.27 , Mem. 1.2.7 , Pl. Euthphr. 15d : with opt. andἄν, S. Tr. 631 , X.
vect.
4.41 .
b. when the action ispres.or past, the ind. is used, εἰσόρα μὴ σκῆψιν οὐκ οὖσαν τίθης
S. El. 584
, cf. E. Ion 1523 , Ar. Nu. 493 , Pl. La. 196c ; ὅρα μὴ παίζων ἔλεγεν
Id. Tht. 145b
, cf. E. Hel. 119 ; φοβούμεθα μὴ ἀμφοτέρων ἡμαρτήκαμεν
Th. 3.53
, cf. E. Or. 209 , Pl. Ly. 218d ; δείδω μὴ δὴ πάντα θεὰ νημερτέα εἶπεν
Od. 5.300
.
c. with ind. andsubj.in consecutive clauses, E. Ph. 93 .
C. in QUESTIONS:
I. direct questions,
1. with ind., where aneg. answer is anticipated (but more generally in A. Ag. 683 (lyr.), S. OC 1502 , Tr. 316 , Pl. Grg. 488b ), in Hom. onlyἦ μή. . ; Od. 6.200 , 9.405 ;μή σοι δοκοῦμεν. . ; A. Pers. 344 , cf. Pr. 249 , 959 , etc.: in Trag. and Att. freq.ἆρα μή; Id. Th. 208 , S. El. 446 , Pl. R. 405a : for questions in whichμή(μηδέ) followsοὐ, v. οὐ μή.
b. in other questions,τί μὴ ποιήσω; what am Inotto do? S. El. 1276 (lyr.);τί μή; whynot? Id. Aj. 668 (s.v.l.); cf.μήν
2. withsubj., when the speaker deliberates about a neg. action,μὴ οὕτω φῶμεν; Pl. R. 335c , cf. 337b , 417b ;ὁ τοιοῦτος μὴ δῷ δίκην; D. 21.35 ;πῶς μὴ φῶμεν; Pl. Tht. 161e : with opt. andἄν, πῶς ἄν τις μὴ θυμῷ λέγοι; how can a manhelp beingexcited when he speaks? Id. Lg. 887c , cf. Grg. 510d , X. Mem. 3.1.10 .
II. indirect questions, freq. with Verbs implyingfearandapprehension(cf. B. 8 ), ὄφρα ἴδωμεν μὴ τοὶ κοιμήσωνται
2. in questions introduced by εἰ, ἤρετό με . . εἰ μὴ μέμνημαι
Aeschin. 2.36
(εἰ οὐκin same sense, 1.84 ): in the second part of a disjunctive question,εἰ . . ἢ(orεἴτε)μή . . , εἴτε . . εἴτε μή. . , A. Eu. 468 , 612 , And. 1.7 , Pl. Ap. 18a , R. 457d , X. Cyr. 2.1.7 ;εἴτε . . εἴτε μή . . , εἰ . . ἢ οὔ, εἰ . . ἢ μήwithout difference of meaning betweenμήandοὐ, Is. 8.9 ; so also, τοὺς νόμους καταμανθάνειν εἰ καλῶς κεῖνται ἢ μή, . . τοὺς λόγους, εἰ ὀρθῶς διδάσκουσι τὸ πρᾶγμα ἢ οὔ
Antipho 5.14
.
D. POSITION ofμή.When the neg. extends its power over the whole clause,μήprop. precedes the Verb. When its force is limited to single words, it precedes those words. But Poets sts. putμήafter the Verb, ὄλοιο μή πω
S. Ph. 961
;φράσῃς . . μὴ πέραib. 332 , cf. OC 1522 .
2. μήis sts. repeated, μή, μή καλέσῃς
Ar. V. 1418
, cf. S. Aj. 190 , OC 210 (both lyr.).
E. PROSODY: in Trag.μήmay be joined by synizesis with a followingειorου , μὴ οὐ, μὴ εἰδέναι, S. OT 13 , 221 , Tr. 321 , etc.: initialεafterμήis cut off by aphaeresis, μὴ 'πὁθουν
