Magnificent. High-deedy, high-doing.
Magniloquent. High-talking.
Mechanics. Matter-might.
Metalepsis. Gr. metalambano, to take over. A use-shifting of a word, a taking of a word over from its common to another meaning; as, ‘Seven harvests ago’ for ‘seven summers or years.’
Metaphor. Gr. metaphora, from metaphero to carry over. A figure of speech, the overcarrying of a name from a thing to which it belongs to another to which it does not belong; as, ‘The Shepherd of Israel’ for ‘the Lord.’ ‘The father of the people’ for ‘a good king.’ ‘Eos Cymru’ (the Welsh nightingale) for ‘a fine Welsh songstress.’ ‘A man burning with anger.’
Metathesis. Gr. meta, with or against; thesis, a putting. A penning-shift, as that of putting each of two pennings in the stead of the other; as, waps, wasp; haps; hasp; though the first of the two shapes is the older in English.
Metathesis is where a word
Shifts pennings, as in crud for curd.
Meteor. Welkin-fire.
Metonymy. Gr. meta, off; onoma, a name. An offnaming, name-shifting, a wording that puts for a thing-name the name of some belonging—whether cause or effect or aught else—of the thing; as, ‘He reads Horace’ for ‘his works.’ ‘He lives by the sweat of his brow’ for ‘work.’ ‘Land holden by the Crown’ (Queen). ‘The power of the pen’ for ‘writers.’
Miosis. Gr. meiōsis, a forlessening. A wording by which a thing is lessened off; as, ‘Will you give me a crumb of bread and a drop of drink?’