Are mean (clarify meaning) and mean (average) etymologically connected? [closed]
It occurred to me that the mean average is sort of the 'definition' of the set, while asking for a statement's meaning is also seeking clarity or a definition.
Is this a coincidence, or was one usage inspired by the usage of the other?
Not related in a discernible way.
From Etymology online:
mean (v.1)
"intend, have in mind;" Middle English mēnen, from Old English mænan "intend (to do something)
and
mean (n.)
"that point, place, or state which is halfway between extremes;" c. 1300, originally in music, "a tone intermediate between two other tones," from Old French meien "middle, means, intermediary," noun use of adjective from Late Latin medianus "of or that is in the middle," from Latin medius "in the middle,"