might
from
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
May \May\ (m[=a]), v. [imp. {Might} (m[imac]t)] [AS. pres. maeg
I am able, pret. meahte, mihte; akin to D. mogen, G.
m["o]gen, OHG. mugan, magan, Icel. mega, Goth. magan, Russ.
moche. [root]103. Cf. {Dismay}, {Main} strength, {Might}. The
old imp. mought is obsolete, except as a provincial word.]
An auxiliary verb qualifying the meaning of another verb, by
expressing:
(a) Ability, competency, or possibility; -- now oftener
expressed by {can}.
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How may a man, said he, with idle speech,
Be won to spoil the castle of his health!
--Spenser.
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For what he [the king] may do is of two kinds; what
he may do as just, and what he may do as possible.
--Bacon.
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For of all sad words of tongue or pen
The saddest are these: "It might have been."
--Whittier.
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(b) Liberty; permission; allowance.
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Thou mayst be no longer steward. --Luke xvi. 2.
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(c) Contingency or liability; possibility or probability.
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Though what he learns he speaks, and may advance
Some general maxims, or be right by chance. --Pope.
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(d) Modesty, courtesy, or concession, or a desire to soften a
question or remark.
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How old may Phillis be, you ask. --Prior.
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(e) Desire or wish, as in prayer, imprecation, benediction,
and the like. "May you live happily." --Dryden.
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{May be}, & {It may be}, are used as equivalent to
{possibly}, {perhaps}, {maybe}, {by chance},
{peradventure}. See 1st {Maybe}.
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from
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Might \Might\, n. [AS. meaht, miht, from the root of magan to be
able, E. may; akin to D. magt, OS. maht, G. macht, Icel.
m[=a]ttr, Goth. mahts. [root]103. See {May}, v.]
Force or power of any kind, whether of body or mind; energy
or intensity of purpose, feeling, or action; means or
resources to effect an object; strength; force; power;
ability; capacity.
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What so strong,
But wanting rest, will also want of might? --Spenser.
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Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart,
and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. --Deut.
vi. 5.
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{With might and main}. See under 2d {Main}.
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from
Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0
135 Moby Thesaurus words for "might":
adequacy, amperage, ampleness, amplitude, arm, armipotence,
ascendancy, authoritativeness, authority, beef, black power,
boundlessness, brawn, brute force, bulk, capability, capacity,
charge, charisma, clout, cogence, cogency, command, competence,
compulsion, control, decisiveness, dint, domination, dominion,
drive, duress, effect, effectiveness, effectuality, endurance,
energy, enormity, enormousness, expanse, flower power, force,
force majeure, forcefulness, formidableness, fortitude, full blast,
full force, fullness, gigantism, grandeur, grandness, great scope,
greatness, guts, gutsiness, hardiness, heartiness, hugeness,
immensity, infinity, influence, intensity, intestinal fortitude,
jurisdiction, largeness, lustihood, lustiness, magisterialness,
magnitude, main force, main strength, mana, mastery,
might and main, mightiness, moxie, muchness, muscle, muscle power,
obstinacy, pizzazz, plenitude, poop, potence, potency,
potentiality, power, power pack, power structure, power struggle,
powerfulness, prepotency, prodigiousness, productiveness,
productivity, puissance, pull, punch, push, qualification,
robustness, ruggedness, sinew, stalwartness, stamina,
staying power, steam, sticking power, stoutness, strength,
strength of will, strenuousness, strings, strong arm,
stupendousness, sturdiness, superiority, superpower, sway, thew,
toughness, tremendousness, validity, vastness, vehemence, vigor,
vigorousness, vim, virility, virtue, virulence, vitality, wattage,
weight
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