μηδέ: but not. and not, nor, not even, not at all;μηδέ always introduces an additional negation, after some negative idea has already been expressed or implied. It is never a correlative word; if more than one μηδέ occurs at the beginning of successive clauses, the first μηδέ refers to some previous negative idea just as much as the second one or the third one does; μηδέ τις.. οἶος μεμάτω μάχεσθαι, μηδ' ἀναχωρείτω, Il. 4.303; here the first μηδέ means and not, nor, the direct quotation being regarded as a continuation of what precedes in the indirect form. Usually μηδέ at the beginning of a sentence means not even or not at all. For the difference between μηδέ and οὐδέ, see μή. See also οὐδέ, fin.
μηδέ, (μή, δέ) neg. Particle (cf. οὐδέ): A. as Conj.,
and not
(Ep. also,
but not), nor
, connecting two whole clauses, used with the same constructions as μή, μή τι σὺ ταῦτα ..διείρεο μηδὲ μετάλλαIl.1.550, etc.: without a neg. preceding, 4.302, etc.; τεκνοῦσθαι, μηδ' ἄπαιδα θνῄσκεινA.Ag.754 (lyr.), cf. Eu.714, Supp.409; ὕδατος, μελίσσης, μηδὲ προσφέρειν μέθυS.OC481, cf. Th.7.77. 2. in μηδέ ..μηδέ ..the first μ. may belong to μηδέ A, e.g. Il.4.303 sq., or to μηδέ B, e.g. Pl.R.391c; μήτε ..μηδέPi.I.2.45, Pl.Prt.327d; but μήτε cannot follow μηδέ:— for μηδέ after οὐδέ, v. οὐA.11.3. B. as Adv., joined with a single word or phrase,