mete
1 Americanverb
verb
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of mete1
before 900; Middle English; Old English metan; cognate with Dutch meten, Old Norse meta, Gothic mitan, German messen to measure, Greek mḗdesthai to ponder
Origin of mete2
1275–1325; Middle English < Middle French < Latin mēta goal, turning post
Explanation
If you "mete out" something (the word is usually followed by "out"), it means you dish it out in very careful measured amounts. Anyone who metes out their love probably isn't someone you want to have a relationship with. Another word often used interchangeably with mete is dole, though there are slight differences in meaning: dole suggests a more lavish, unthinking form of activity than the more stingy and controlled mete, and while some nice things (like compassion or love) can be "doled out," it's very rare that anything pleasant or happy is "meted out."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
They are assured they won’t need to remain in a game for as long as past pitchers who had to mete out velocity judiciously so they could finish nine innings.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
The case pitted McGlockton’s right to defend his family from a threatening stranger against Drejka’s right to initiate a confrontation over a parking spot and then to mete out justice according to his own whim.
From Slate ● Jun. 4, 2026
Williams’ Anna absorbs his fury as though it were the penance she herself would mete out for her sins.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 15, 2025
They started to mete out desegregation orders with teeth, requiring busing if necessary.
From Seattle Times ● May 16, 2024
He went so far as to hope that human justice would mete out punishment unflinchingly.
From "The Stranger" by Albert Camus
Filmmaking has not been exempt from the disruption meted out onto the creative industries by AI's rapid development in recent years.
From Barron's ● Jun. 19, 2026
"Work will continue to ensure there is clear deterrents in terms of the punishments meted out by the law," he said.
From BBC ● Jun. 7, 2026
We have already seen justice meted out by British judges in speech cases.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 7, 2025
The Sentencing Council, made up of some of the most senior legal figures in England and Wales, said the guidance would address disparities in the punishments meted out by judges.
From BBC ● Mar. 31, 2025
His status netted him a grand total of $200 a month, a stipend meted out by a few admiring patrons.
From "Endgame" by Frank Brady
Such changes would go hand in hand with an overhaul of the department’s much-maligned disciplinary system, which has faced criticism from some corners for not meting out harsh enough punishments when officers shoot unarmed people.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 8, 2026
Shew said he and other election officials will focus on meting out the state’s voting laws fairly and helping make sure the public understands them.
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 3, 2024
“Drift” frames the source of Jacqueline’s psychological torment as a mystery, meting out cryptic flashbacks to the character’s back story in Liberia.
From New York Times ● Feb. 8, 2024
Currently two separate bodies are responsible for monitoring potential money laundering and meting out sanctions, the Central Office for Sanctions Enforcement and the Central Office for Financial Transaction Investigations.
From Reuters ● Jul. 24, 2023
"It is my duty to use this power first of all in meting out justice."
From The Pharaoh and the Priest An Historical Novel of Ancient Egypt by Jeremiah Curtin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
