different between rule vs might

English

Pronunciation

• (UK, US) IPA^(key): /?u?l/, [?u??]
• Rhymes: -u?l

Etymology 1

From Middle English reule, rewle, rule, borrowed from Old French riule, reule, itself an early semi-learned borrowing from Latin regula (“straight stick, bar, ruler, pattern”), from reg? (“to keep straight, direct, govern, rule”); see regent.

Noun

rule (countable and uncountable, plural rules)

1. A regulation, law, guideline.
   • a. 1694, John Tillotson, Of The Obligations of Christians to a Holy Life

     We profess to have embraced a religion which contains the most exact rules for the government of our lives.
2. A regulating principle.
   • c. 1604, William Shakespeare, All's well that ends well, Act I, scene I

     There's little can be said in 't; 'Tis against the rule of nature.

3. The act of ruling; administration of law; government; empire; authority; control.
4. A normal condition or state of affairs.

   My rule is to rise at six o'clock.

5. (obsolete) Conduct; behaviour.
6. (law) An order regulating the practice of the courts, or an order made between parties to an action or a suit.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Wharton to this entry?)

7. (mathematics) A determinate method prescribed for performing any operation and producing a certain result.

   a rule for extracting the cube root

8. A ruler; device for measuring, a straightedge, a measure.
   • a. 1716, Robert South, Sermons

     As we may observe in the Works of Art, a Judicious Artist will indeed use his Eye, but he will trust only to his Rule.

9. A straight line (continuous mark, as made by a pen or the like), especially one lying across a paper as a guide for writing.
10. (printing, dated) A thin plate of brass or other metal, of the same height as the type, and used for printing lines, as between columns on the same page, or in tabular work.

Derived terms

Related terms

• regulate
• regent
• regular

Translations

Etymology 2

From Middle English rulen, borrowed from Old French riuler, from Latin regul?re (“to regulate, rule”), from regula (“a rule”); see regular and regulate.

Verb

rule (third-person singular simple present rules, present participle ruling, simple past and past participle ruled)

1. (transitive) To regulate, be in charge of, make decisions for, reign over.
2. (slang, intransitive) To excel.

3. (intransitive) To decide judicially.
4. (transitive) To establish or settle by, or as by, a rule; to fix by universal or general consent, or by common practice.
   • 1687, Francis Atterbury, An Answer to some Considerations, the Spirit of Martin Luther and the Original of the Reformation

     That's a ruled case with the school-men.

5. (transitive) To mark (paper or the like) with rules (lines).

Synonyms

• (to excel): rock (also slang)

Antonyms

• (to excel): suck (vulgar slang)

Derived terms

Translations

Etymology 3

Related to revel.

Noun

rule

1. (obsolete) Revelry.

Verb

rule (third-person singular simple present rules, present participle ruling, simple past and past participle ruled)

1. (obsolete, intransitive) To revel.

Further reading

• rule in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• rule in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.

Anagrams

• ReLU, Ruel, lure

Spanish

Verb

rule

1. Formal second-person singular (usted) imperative form of rular.
2. First-person singular (yo) present subjunctive form of rular.
3. Formal second-person singular (usted) present subjunctive form of rular.
4. Third-person singular (él, ella, also used with usted^?) present subjunctive form of rular.

English

Alternative forms

• mite (eye dialect, informal)

Pronunciation

• enPR: m?t, IPA^(key): /ma?t/
• Homophone: mite
• Rhymes: -a?t

Etymology 1

From Middle English myght, might (also maught, macht, maht), from Old English miht, mieht, meaht, mæht (“might, bodily strength, power, authority, ability, virtue, mighty work, miracle, angel”), from Proto-West Germanic *mahti, from Proto-Germanic *mahtiz, *mahtuz (“might, power”), from Proto-Indo-European *móg?tis, *meg?- (“to allow, be able, help”), corresponding to Germanic *magan? + *-þiz.

Cognate with Scots micht, maucht (“might”), North Frisian macht (“might, ability”), West Frisian macht (“might, ability”), Dutch macht (“might, power”), German Macht (“power, might”), Swedish makt (“might”), Norwegian makt (“power”), Icelandic máttur (“might”), Gothic ???????????????????? (mahts). Related to may.

Noun

might (countable and uncountable, plural mights)

1. (countable, uncountable) Power, strength, force or influence held by a person or group.
   • 1969, {unattributed}, Journal of the United Service Institution of India, Volume 99

     "Since every nation considers itself right, peace lies in balancing the military mights of the possible rivals."

2. (uncountable) Physical strength or force.

   He pushed with all his might, but still it would not move.

3. (uncountable) The ability to do something.

Derived terms

Translations

Adjective

might (comparative mighter, superlative mightest)

1. (obsolete) Mighty; powerful.
2. (obsolete) Possible.

Etymology 2

From Old English meahte and mihte, from magan, whence English may.

Verb

might (third-person singular simple present might, no present participle, simple past might, no past participle)

1. (auxiliary) Used to indicate conditional or possible actions.
   • 1608, Joseph Hall, Characters of Virtues and Vices

     The characterism of an honest man: He looks not to what he might do, but what he should.

   • “A tight little craft,” was Austin’s invariable comment on the matron; […]. ¶ Near her wandered her husband, orientally bland, invariably affable, and from time to time squinting sideways, as usual, in the ever-renewed expectation that he might catch a glimpse of his stiff, retroussé moustache.
2. (auxiliary) simple past tense of may Used to indicate permission in past tense.
   • 1922, James Frazer, The Golden Bough, Chapter 60:

     The king and queen of Tahiti might not touch the ground anywhere but within their hereditary domains; for the ground on which they trod became sacred.

3. (auxiliary) simple past tense of may Used to indicate possibility in past tense.
4. Used to indicate a desired past action that was not done.
5. (auxiliary) Even though.
6. (auxiliary) Used in polite requests for permission

Usage notes

For many speakers, the use as the past tense of the auxiliary may, indicating permission, is obsolete: I told him he might not see her will only be interpreted as "I told him he would possibly not see her," and not as "I told him he was not allowed to see her." For the latter case, "could not" or "was/were not allowed to," "was/were forbidden to," etc., will be used instead.

Conjugation

• archaic second-person singular simple past - mightest
• nonstandard, archaic third-person singular simple past - mighteth

Alternative forms

• mought (obsolete outside US dialects)
• mout (US regional pronunciation spelling)

Translations

See also

• could
• Appendix:English modal verbs
• Appendix:English tag questions

References

• might at OneLook Dictionary Search