meed

Meanings

Noun

• A payment or recompense made for services rendered or in recognition of some achievement; reward, deserts; award.
• A gift; bribe.
• Merit or desert; worth.

Verb

• To reward; bribe.
• To deserve; merit.

Origin

• From Middle English meede, mede, from Old English mēd, meord, meard, meorþ, from Proto-Germanic *mizdō ("meed"), from Proto-Indo-European *misdʰós, from Proto-Indo-European *mey-. Cognate with obsolete Dutch miede ("wages"), Low German mede ("payment, wages, reward"), German Miete ("rent"), Gothic 𐌼𐌹𐌶𐌳𐍉 ("meed, reward, payment, recompense"), Ancient Greek μισθός ("wage"), Old Church Slavonic мьзда ("reward"), Sanskrit मीळ्ह, Sanskrit मीढ, Avestan 𐬨𐬍𐬲𐬛𐬀.
• From Middle English meden, from Old English *mēdian ("to reward, bribe"), from Proto-Germanic *mizdōną ("to reward"), from Proto-Indo-European *misdʰ- ("to pay"). Cognate with Middle Low German mēden ("to reward"), German mieten ("to rent").