different between mickle vs fickle

English

Etymology

From Middle English mickle, michel, mikel, mochel, muchel, mukel (“much; many; large, tall; great”), from Old English mi?el, my?el (“big, large; great; much”) or Old Norse mikill (“great, tall; much”), both from Proto-Germanic *mikilaz (“great, large; many, much”), from Proto-Indo-European *mé?h?s (“big, great”). The word is cognate with Icelandic mikill (“large in quantity or number; much; great”).

For the adverb and noun forms, compare Middle English muchel (“extensively, greatly, much”, adverb) and Middle English muchel (“large amount”, noun).

The noun sense “a small amount” was due to the proverb many a little makes a mickle being incorrectly rendered as many a mickle makes a muckle, leading to mickle being thought to mean “a small quantity” and muckle to mean “a large quantity”, even though muckle is a variant of mickle and both mean “a large quantity”.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /?m?k(?)l/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /?m?k?l/
• Rhymes: -?k?l
• Hyphenation: mick?le

Adjective

mickle (comparative more mickle, superlative most mickle)

1. (archaic, now chiefly Scotland and Northern England, especially Northumbria) (Very) great or large.

   Synonym: muckle

Usage notes

The use in Northumbrian is occasional; the word muckle is more common.

Derived terms

Adverb

mickle (comparative more mickle, superlative most mickle)

1. (archaic, now chiefly Scotland) To a great extent.
2. (obsolete) Frequently, often.

Noun

mickle (countable and uncountable, plural mickles)

1. (archaic, chiefly Scotland) A great amount.
2. (archaic, Scotland, originally erroneous) A small amount.
3. (obsolete) Great or important people as a class.
4. (obsolete) Greatness, largeness, stature.

Derived terms

• many a mickle makes a muckle

Determiner

mickle

1. (archaic, now chiefly Scotland and Northern England, especially Northumbria) Much; a great quantity or amount of.
2. (archaic, now chiefly Scotland and Northumbria) Most; the majority of.

Pronoun

mickle

1. (archaic, now chiefly Scotland) A great extent or large amount.

Alternative forms

• meikle
• michel (obsolete)
• muchell (obsolete)

References

Further reading

• mickle in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• John A. Simpson and Edward S. C. Weiner, editors (1989) , “mickle”, in The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd edition, Oxford: Clarendon Press, ?ISBN

Anagrams

• Melick, Mickel, melick

Scots

Alternative forms

• mikil, mekil, mukill, muckle

Etymology

From Old English mi?el, my?el.

Adjective

mickle (comparative mair mickle, superlative maist mickle)

1. much, great

Noun

mickle (uncountable)

1. a great amount

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?f?k.?l/
• Rhymes: -?k?l

Etymology 1

From Middle English fikil, fikel, from Old English ficol (“fickle, cunning, tricky, deceitful”), equivalent to fike +? -le. More at fike.

Adjective

fickle (comparative fickler or more fickle, superlative ficklest or most fickle)

1. Quick to change one’s opinion or allegiance; insincere; not loyal or reliable.
2. (figuratively) Changeable.
   • 2014, Paul Salopek, Blessed. Cursed. Claimed., National Geographic (December 2014)[1]

Derived terms

Translations

Etymology 2

From Middle English fikelen, from fikel (“fickle”); see above. Cognate with Low German fikkelen (“to deceive, flatter”), German ficklen, ficheln (“to deceive, flatter”).

Verb

fickle (third-person singular simple present fickles, present participle fickling, simple past and past participle fickled)

1. (transitive) To deceive, flatter.
2. (transitive, Britain dialectal) To puzzle, perplex, nonplus.

Anagrams

• Fickel