meta
/ˈmɛtə/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.74 in modern English
6
Scrabble Score
4
Letters
2
Syllables
4
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
Clipping of metanalysis: metanalysis or metacommentary focused on media, fandom, or related topics, typically presented as an essay or dialogue.
Slang
adj
Self-referential; structured analogously (structured by relationships), but at a higher level.
Informal
adj
Prominent in the metagame; effective and frequently used in competitive gameplay.
Example Sentences
- "I don't think the character will be part of the meta even with the recent buffs."
- "The phrase, “tank meta”, is one that carries a lot of weight when it comes to MOBAs. These metas are generally characterized by tanky, unkillable behemoths dominating the meta and leaving any character that isn’t focused around raw DPS in the dust."
- "Each video sharing platform's community has a meta on how long videos should be."
- "I remember interviewing PewDiePie a few years ago, and he was sort of telling me about this time where it was like edgy videos were being really rewarded, so everyone was kind of chasing like edgy humor and edgy memes, and sort of trying to figure out where the edge was. And then YouTube changed the meta, and suddenly, it wasn't good to be edgy, you weren't going to make as much money or get as many views."
- "Many metas on Tumblr incorporate GIFs of scenes they are referencing as well as screencaps."
- "Fans create their own stories and media representation through fan fiction. They challenge the feminism in the [Sarah J. Maas] books through discussions and metas."
Etymology
Etymology 1, adjective sense 1 is a back-formation from meta- (prefix). Etymology 1, adjective sense 2 is derived from noun etymology 1, noun sense 1. The noun senses are clippings of various terms beginning with meta (prefix). Folk etymology for noun etymology 1, noun sense 1 also suggests an acronym for most effective/efficient tactic available.
Origin
- Source language: Latin
Word Breakdown
- Root: mēta, Meta
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈmɛtə/
- British English: /ˈmɛtə/