meridian

Meanings

Noun

• The south.
• Midday, noon.
• A great circle passing through the poles of the celestial sphere and the zenith for a particular point on the earth's surface.
• An imaginary great circle on the Earth's surface, passing through the geographic poles, or that half of such a circle extending from pole to pole, all points of which have the same longitude.
• The highest or most developed point of something; culmination, splendour.
• A particular area or situation considered as having a specific identity or characteristic; the tastes or habits of a specific locale, group etc.
• The middle period of someone's life, when they are at full strength or abilities; one's prime.
• A line passing through the poles of any sphere; a notional line on the surface of a round or curved body.
• A dram drunk at midday.
• Any of the pathways on the body along which the vital energy is thought to flow and, therefore, the acupoints are distributed.
• The size of type between double great primer and canon, standardized as 44-point.

Adjective

• Meridional; relating to a meridian.
• Relating to noon
• Relating to the highest point or culmination.

Origin

• Middle English meridian, from Anglo-Norman meridien, Middle French meridien ("midday; the south; celestial meridian"), and their source, Latin merīdiānum, noun use of neuter form of merīdiānus, ultimately from medius + diēs.