Quenya 

mi

in, within

mi prep. "in, within" (MI, VT27:20, VT44:18, 34, VT43:30; the latter source also mentions the variant imi); "in the" (Nam, RGEO:66; CO gives mi; the correct forms should evidently be mi = "in" and = mi i "in the"; VT49:35 also has with a long vowel, though the gloss is simply "in"). Used in PE17:71 (cf. 70) of people clad "in" various colours, e.g. mi mísë "in grey". Allative minna "to the inside, into" (MI), also mina (VT43:30). The forms mimmë and mingwë seem to incorporate pronominal suffixes for "us", hence ?"in us", inclusive and exclusive respectively. The pronoun -mmë denoted plural inclusive "we" when this was written, though Tolkien would later make it dual instead (see -mmë). Second person forms are also given: mil or milyë *"in you" (sg.), millë "in you" (pl.) (VT43:36). A special use of mi appears in the phrase Wendë mi Wenderon "Virgin of Virgins" (VT44:18); here mi appears superfluous to achieve the desired meaning, but this combination of singular noun + mi + plural genitive noun may be seen as a fixed idiom expressing that the initial noun represents the most prominent member of a class.

mi

preposition. in, in, [ᴹQ.] within

Cognates

  • S. mi “*in”

Derivations

  • “in, within” ✧ PE17/092; VT47/30
    • MI/IMI “in, within, [ᴹ√] inside” ✧ PE17/092; VT47/30
  • MI/IMI “in, within, [ᴹ√] inside” ✧ VT43/30

Element in

Phonetic Developments

DevelopmentStagesSources
> [mi]✧ PE17/092
mi > imi[imi]✧ VT43/30
mi > mi[mi]✧ VT43/30
> [mi]✧ VT47/30

Variations

  • ✧ PE17/092; VT47/30
  • ✧ RGEO/58; VT49/35
  • imi ✧ VT43/30
  • mil ✧ VT43/30 (mil)
Quenya [LotR/0377; PE17/063; PE17/071; PE17/092; RGEO/58; UT/305; UT/317; VT43/13; VT43/30; VT43/36; VT44/18; VT44/34; VT47/30; VT49/35] Group: Eldamo. Published by

imi

in

imi prep. "in"; see mi (VT43:30)

imi

preposition. in, in, [ᴱQ.] inside

mil

mil

mil, see mi

mir

to the inside, into

mir (1) prep. with old allative ending "to the inside, into"(also minna) (MI). This is mi "in" with the same allative ending -r (from primitive ¤-da) as in tar "thither", q.v.

millë

millë

millë, preposition with suffix, see mi

milyë

milyë

milyë (1) preposition with suffix, see mi

milyë

milyë

milyë (2) noun, short form of amilyë, q.v.

minna

to the inside, into

minna prep. "to the inside, into" (also mir) (MI); variant mina "into" (VT43:30), possibly occurring, compounded, in minasurie, q.v.

mitta

preposition/adverb. between, [ᴹQ.] inwards, into, [ᴱQ.] in; [Q.] between

Derivations

  • MI/IMI “in, within, [ᴹ√] inside” ✧ VT43/30

Element in

Phonetic Developments

DevelopmentStagesSources
mi > mitta-[mitta]✧ VT43/30

Variations

  • mitta- ✧ VT43/30

mitta-

between

mitta- (2) prep. "between" (VT43:30; the final hyphen may suggest that suffixes would normally follow)

ilcë

you

ilcë ("k") (2) *"you", emphatic pronoun of the 2nd person pl. familiar, apparently a form abandoned by Tolkien. An alternative form incë was also listed; a query appears between the forms (VT49:48).

imbë

between

imbë (1) prep "between" (Nam, RGEO:67, VT47:11, PE17:92). This is "between" referring to a gap, space, barrier, or anything intervening between two other things, like or unlike one another (compare enel). The pluralized form imbi implies "among" of several things (ancalima imbi eleni "brightest among stars"); "in the sense 'among' before plurals [imbë] is usually pluralized > imbi even when a plural noun follows". As pointed out by Patrick Wynne, imbi may also be used in the sense of "between" before two singular nouns connected by "and" (as in the example imbi Menel Cemenyë "between heaven and earth"), whereas imbë is used before dual forms, as in the examples imbë siryat "between two rivers", imbë met "between us". Elided imb' in the phrase imb' illi "among all" (VT47:11, 30). A dual form imbit is also mentioned, used to express "in absolute form the sense 'between two things' when these are not named" (apparently meaning that imbit expresses *"between them" referring to two entities, with no noun following) (VT47:30, PE17:92)

incë

you

incë ("k") *"you", emphatic pronoun for 2nd person pl. familiar, apparently a form abandoned by Tolkien. It is listed as an alternative to ilcë in the source, a query appearing between the forms (VT49:48, 49). The word could also be read as intë (VT49:49)

-ldë

you

-ldë (1) pronominal suffix "you", 2nd person pl. (VT49:51; carildë *"you do", VT49:16). This ending Tolkien revised from -llë in earlier sources (VT49:48, cf. PE17:69).

-llo

you

[-llo (2) "you", dual; abandoned pronominal ending. Also written -illo. (VT49:49)]

-llë

you

-llë (2) abandoned pronominal ending "you", 2nd person pl. (VT49:48); Tolkien later revised this ending to -ldë.

-lyë

you, thou

-l or -lyë (VT49:48, 51), pronominal endings for 2nd person sg. polite/formal "you, thou": caril or carilyë *"you do" (VT49:16), hamil "you judge" (VT42:33), anel "you were" (see #1); see -lyë for further examples. These endings may also be added to pronouns (etel/etelyë or mil, milyë; see et, mi). In one source, -l is rather used as a reduced affix denoting plural "you"; see heca! (WJ:364)

-ndë

you

[#-ndë (2) pronominal suffix for dual "you", as in carindë *"you (two) do". Tolkien changed the ending to -stë (VT49:33)]

-ntyë

you

[-ntyë "you", abandonded pronominal ending for 2nd person pl. familiar (VT49:49)]

-stë

you

-stë "you", 2nd person dual pronominal ending (VT49:51, 53), e.g. caristë "the two of you do" (VT49:16). Tolkien first wrote carindë, but changed the ending (VT49:33). The ending -stë is derived from earlier -dde (VT49:46, 51). An archaic ending of similar form could also be the third person dual, "the two of them" (but see -ttë #1).

-tyë

you

-t (3) reduced pronominal affix of the 2. person, "you" (sg.), the long form being -tyë (both endings are listed in VT49:48). See heca regarding the example hecat (WJ:364). However, in a later source, Tolkien denies that -tyë has any short form (VT49:51, 57). The status of the ending -t is therefore doubtful.

-tyë

you, thou

-tyë pronominal ending "you, thou" (VT49:48, 51), 2nd person familiar/intimate: carityë *"you do" (VT49:16; the corresponding formal/polite ending is -l, -lyë, cf. PE17:135 where Tolkien states that hiruvalyë "thou shalt find" from Namárië would be hiruvatyë if the polite pronoun were replaced by the familiar one). Compare the independent pronoun tye. In VT49:51, Tolkien denies that the ending -tyë has any short form (see, however, -t # 3). Cf. natyë "you are"; see #1. Compare tye, -tya.

alyë

you

alyë imperative particle with ending -lyë "you"; see a #3.

enel

between

enel prep. "between" = "at the central position in a row, list, series, etc. but also applied to the case of three persons" (VT47:11). This preposition refers to the position of a thing between others of the same kind; compare imbë.

le

you

le, pronominal element "you", (originally) the "reverential 2nd person sing" (RGEO:73, VT49:56). However, singular le was apparently altered to lye (q.v.), and le took on a plural significance (le for pl. "you" is apparently derived from de, the ancient 2nd person pl. stem, VT49:50-51). Stressed (VT49:51), dual let "the two of you" (ibid.). At certain points in Tolkiens conception, le was still sg. "thou" rather than pl. "you". It is attested as an ending in the imperative form antalë "give thou" (VT43:17); see anta-. The form ólë in VT43:29 apparently means *"with thee"; according to Tolkiens later system, it would rather mean "with you" (pl.) Compare aselyë "with thee" (sg.) in a later source (see as).

tye

you, thou, thee

tye pron. "you, thou, thee", 2nd person intimate/familar (LR:61, 70, Arct, VT49:36, 55), corresponding to formal/polite lye. According to VT49:51, tye was used as an endearment especially between lovers, and (grand)parents and children also used it to address one another ("to use the adult lye was more stern"). Tyenya "my tye", used = "dear kinsman" (VT49:51). The pronoun tye is derived from kie, sc. an original stem ki with an added -e(VT49:50). Stressed tyé; dual tyet "the two of you" (VT49:51 another note reproduced on the same page however states that tye has no dual form, and VT49:52 likewise states that the 2nd person familiar "never deleloped" dual or plural forms). Compare the reflexive pronoun intyë "yourself". Possibly related to the pronominal stem KE (2nd person sg.), if tye represents earlier *kye.

Sindarin 

mi

preposition. *in

Changes

  • mivi “*in” ✧ VT50/18

Cognates

  • Q. mi “in, in, [ᴹQ.] within”

Derivations

  • “in, within”
    • MI/IMI “in, within, [ᴹ√] inside” ✧ PE17/092; VT47/30

Element in

Variations

  • vi ✧ VT50/18; VT50/19
Sindarin [PE22/165; VT44/22; VT44/27; VT50/18; VT50/19] Group: Eldamo. Published by

min-

preposition. (in) between (referring to a gap, space, barrier or anything intervening between two other things)

Sindarin [Minhiriath LotR/Map, VT/47:11,14] Group: SINDICT. Published by

mîn

preposition. (in) between (referring to a gap, space, barrier or anything intervening between two other things)

Sindarin [Minhiriath LotR/Map, VT/47:11,14] Group: SINDICT. Published by

im

preposition. between

Derivations

  • MI/IMI “in, within, [ᴹ√] inside”

Element in

Variations

  • im ✧ S/123

vi

preposition. in

Sindarin [VT/44:21,27] Group: SINDICT. Published by

vi

preposition. in

-dhir

suffix. you

{ð} 2nd pl. pron. suff. #you. Q. -ltar.See paradigm PE17:132.

Sindarin [(PE17 Sindarin Corpus) PE17:132] -. Group: Parma Eldalamberon 17 Sindarin Corpus. Published by

ned

preposition. (uncertain meaning) in, of (about time, e.g. giving a date)

[Another possible interpretation: "another, one more" (related to Q. net(e)), VT/47:40]

Sindarin [SD/129-31] Group: SINDICT. Published by

-d

suffix. you

2nd du. pron. suff. #you (two). Q. -star.See paradigm PE17:132.

Sindarin [(PE17 Sindarin Corpus) PE17:132] -. Group: Parma Eldalamberon 17 Sindarin Corpus. Published by

-dh

suffix. you

{ð} 2nd du. pron. suff. #you (two). Q. -star.See paradigm PE17:132.

Sindarin [(PE17 Sindarin Corpus) PE17:132] -. Group: Parma Eldalamberon 17 Sindarin Corpus. Published by

-dh

suffix. you

{ð} 2nd sg. pron. suff. #you. Q. -tar.See paradigm PE17:132.

Sindarin [(PE17 Sindarin Corpus) PE17:132] -. Group: Parma Eldalamberon 17 Sindarin Corpus. Published by

de

pronoun. you

Sindarin [PE17/026] Group: Eldamo. Published by

mi

between

mi (with article: min)

mi

between

(with article: min)

mîn

i

(min-) means ”between” referring to a gap, space, barrier or anything intervening between two other things (VT47:11, 14)

in

unstressed di (beneath, under) (VT45:37). Note: a homophone means ”bride, lady”.

im

between

(prep.) im (within), also as prefix im- ”between, inter-”. Note: homophones include the pronoun ”I” and a noun mening ”dell, deep vale”. The word mîn (min-) means ”between” referring to a gap, space, barrier or anything intervening between two other things (VT47:11, 14)

im

between

(within), also as prefix im- ”between, inter-”. Note: homophones include the pronoun ”

ne

in

ned (used of time in the source), possibly followed by hard mutation (SD:129)

ne

in, inside

(prefix) (mid-)

vi

in

(prep.) 1) vi (VT44:23), with article vin; 2) ne, ned (used of time in the source), possibly followed by hard mutation (SD:129); 3) , unstressed di (beneath, under) (VT45:37). Note: a homophone means ”bride, lady”.

vi

in

(VT44:23), with article vin

ne

in, inside

ne- (prefix) (mid-)

Telerin 

de

pronoun. you

Derivations

  • le “you (sg.)” ✧ VT49/50

Nandorin 

enel

preposition. between, in the middle

This form was supposedly recorded by the Loremasters (VT47:39). It is derived from a variant of the root ÉNED- "centre" (LR:356), since "d and l interchanged frequently in Common Eldarin" (VT47:39).

Nandorin [H. Fauskanger (LR:356, VT47:39)] < ÉNED-. Published by

Black Speech

ishi

preposition. in, inside

Element in

Black Speech [LotR/0254; PE17/011; PE17/012] Group: Eldamo. Published by

ishi

preposition. in, inside

Usually placed after the noun in Black Speech, c.f. burzum-ishi (darkness-inside).

Black Speech [PE17/11] Published by

Primitive elvish

preposition. in, within

Derivations

  • MI/IMI “in, within, [ᴹ√] inside” ✧ PE17/092; VT47/30

Derivatives

  • Q. mi “in, in, [ᴹQ.] within” ✧ PE17/092; VT47/30
  • S. mi “*in”

Element in

  • ᴺS. “(to the) inside; into”
Primitive elvish [PE17/092; VT47/30] Group: Eldamo. Published by

imi

root. in

mīni

preposition. between

Derivations

  • MI/IMI “in, within, [ᴹ√] inside” ✧ VT47/11

Derivatives

  • S. mîn “[thing] between; gap, space, barrier; anything intervening between two other things” ✧ VT47/11
Primitive elvish [VT47/11] Group: Eldamo. Published by

mi/imi

root. in, within, [ᴹ√] inside

This invertible root had the basic sense “in(side)” for all of Tolkien’s life. It first appeared as ᴱ√IMI “in, into” and ᴱ√MĪ² in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s with derivatives like ᴱQ. imi “in, inside” and ᴱQ. mitta- “enter” (QL/42, 61). Deleted Gnomish forms like G. bi “in” and G. bin “into” might be derived from a strengthened form of the root ✱ᴱ√MBI (GL/21) but Tolkien said the undeleted prefix bi- or G. ba “in“ had a Qenya cognate ve (GL/20), so I think these were based on some other (abandoned) root.

Both ᴹ√MI “inside” and its inversion ᴹ√IMI “in” appeared in The Etymologies of the 1930s (Ety/MI; EtyAC/IMI), though the only derivative of the inversion was ᴹ√IMBE “dell, deep vale” (EtyAC/IMI, IMBE). The root or its inversion appeared a number of times in Tolkien’s later writings as well, up into the 1960s (PE17/41, 92; VT47/11, 30).

Derivatives

  • imbi “between” ✧ PE17/092; VT47/11; VT47/30
    • Q. imbë “between, among, between, among; [ᴹQ.] in(wards)” ✧ PE17/092; VT47/11; VT47/30
    • S. im “valley, valley; [N.] dell, deep vale” ✧ VT47/14
    • T. imbe “gap, gully; low/narrow tract between high walls” ✧ VT47/14
  • “in, within” ✧ PE17/092; VT47/30
    • Q. mi “in, in, [ᴹQ.] within” ✧ PE17/092; VT47/30
    • S. mi “*in”
  • mīni “between” ✧ VT47/11
    • S. mîn “[thing] between; gap, space, barrier; anything intervening between two other things” ✧ VT47/11
  • Q. imbë “deep valley, wide ravine, (lit.) tween-land, deep valley, (wide) ravine, [ᴹQ.] glen, dell, (lit.) tween-land”
  • Q. imíca “among” ✧ VT43/30
  • Q. mi “in, in, [ᴹQ.] within” ✧ VT43/30
  • Q. mina “into, in, into, in, [ᴹQ.] to the inside” ✧ VT43/30
  • Q. mitta “between, [ᴹQ.] inwards, into, [ᴱQ.] in; [Q.] between” ✧ VT43/30
  • Q. mitta- “to insert, to insert; [ᴹQ.] to come in, [ᴱQ.] enter” ✧ VT43/30
  • S. im “between”
  • ᴺS. mîg “among”
  • S. minna- “to go in, enter” ✧ PE17/041

Element in

Variations

  • MI ✧ PE17/041; PE17/165; VT47/11
  • IMI ✧ PE17/092; PE17/155
  • mi ✧ VT43/30
  • imi ✧ VT47/30
Primitive elvish [PE17/041; PE17/092; PE17/155; PE17/165; VT43/30; VT47/11; VT47/30] Group: Eldamo. Published by

imbi

preposition. between

Derivations

  • MI/IMI “in, within, [ᴹ√] inside” ✧ PE17/092; VT47/11; VT47/30

Derivatives

  • Q. imbë “between, among, between, among; [ᴹQ.] in(wards)” ✧ PE17/092; VT47/11; VT47/30
  • S. im “valley, valley; [N.] dell, deep vale” ✧ VT47/14
  • T. imbe “gap, gully; low/narrow tract between high walls” ✧ VT47/14

Element in

  • Q. imbilat “*deep valley” ✧ NM/355
  • S. imlad “deep valley, narrow valley with steep sides, gap, gully, deep valley, narrow valley with steep sides, gap, gully, [N.] dell, glen” ✧ NM/355

Variations

  • imbĭ ✧ PE17/092; VT47/30
Primitive elvish [NM/355; PE17/092; VT47/11; VT47/14; VT47/30] Group: Eldamo. Published by

ne

root. *in

Noldorin 

di

preposition. in

Derivations

  • ᴹ√(N)DI “in” ✧ EtyAC/NDI

Element in

Phonetic Developments

DevelopmentStagesSources
ᴹ√NDI/DI > di[ndi] > [di]✧ EtyAC/NDI
Noldorin [EtyAC/NDI] Group: Eldamo. Published by

ne-

prefix. in

Derivations

  • ᴹ√NE “*in”

Element in

  • N. neledh- “*to go in, enter”
  • N. nestag- “to insert, stick in” ✧ Ety/STAK
  • ᴺS. nethan- “to inspire, kindle inside”
Noldorin [Ety/STAK] Group: Eldamo. Published by

nedh-

prefix. in, inside, mid-

See also the preposition ned , and the noun ened for a discussion of this form

Noldorin [Ety/376] Group: SINDICT. Published by

Beware, older languages below! The languages below were invented during Tolkien's earlier period and should be used with caution. Remember to never, ever mix words from different languages!

Qenya 

mi

preposition. in, within

Derivations

  • ᴹ√MĪ/IMI “in, inside” ✧ Ety/MI

Element in

Phonetic Developments

DevelopmentStagesSources
ᴹ√MI > mi[mi]✧ Ety/MI
Qenya [Ety/MI; LR/072] Group: Eldamo. Published by

to

preposition. in

Element in

le

pronoun. you

Element in

Variations

  • le ✧ PE22/106; PE22/118; PE22/119; PE22/120; PE22/124; PE22/127
  • ✧ PE22/124
Qenya [PE22/106; PE22/118; PE22/119; PE22/120; PE22/123; PE22/124; PE22/127] Group: Eldamo. Published by

Middle Primitive Elvish

imi

root. in

Middle Primitive Elvish Group: Eldamo. Published by

(n)di

root. in

Derivatives

  • N. di “in” ✧ EtyAC/NDI

Variations

  • NDI/DI ✧ EtyAC/NDI
Middle Primitive Elvish [EtyAC/NDI] Group: Eldamo. Published by

ne

root. *in

A rejected root in The Etymologies of the 1930s with a strengthened form ✱ndē̆ serving as the basis for the prefix in N. nestag- “insert”, possibly related to ᴹ√NED “middle” (EtyAC/NĒ̆). The strengthened form may have been replaced by the root ᴹ√(N)DI “in” (EtyAC/NDI), but in later writing ✶ndī was given the meaning “beneath, not touching, under” (PE17/95). Despite the rejection of the root, the verb N. nestag- “insert” remained unmodified under the root ᴹ√STAK (Ety/STAK), and there is further evidence for the ne- prefix in the verb N. neledh- “enter” appearing on the 1936 draft of Thror’s Map from this same time period (TAI/150).

Neo-Eldarin: For purposes of Neo-Eldarin, I think it is worth retaining this (Noldorin and Sindarin-only?) prefix ne- “in”.

Derivatives

  • ᴹ✶ndē̆- “in, inside” ✧ EtyAC/NĒ̆
  • N. ne- “in”

Element in

  • On. nestak- “to insert, stick in” ✧ EtyAC/NĒ̆ (ne-stak-)

Variations

  • NĒ̆ ✧ EtyAC/NĒ̆ (NĒ̆)
Middle Primitive Elvish [EtyAC/NĒ̆] Group: Eldamo. Published by

mī/imi

root. in, inside

Derivatives

  • ᴹ√IMBE “dell, deep vale”
    • ᴹQ. imbe “dell, deep vale, ravine, glen” ✧ EtyAC/IMBE
    • N. imm “dell, deep vale” ✧ EtyAC/IMBE
  • ᴹQ. imbe “in(wards)” ✧ EtyAC/IMÍ
  • ᴹQ. mi “in, within” ✧ Ety/MI
  • ᴹQ. minna “into, to the inside” ✧ Ety/MI
  • ᴹQ. mir “to the inside, into” ✧ Ety/MI
  • ᴹQ. mitta “inwards, (?into)” ✧ EtyAC/MI
  • ᴹQ. mitya “interior” ✧ Ety/MI
  • N. minna- “to enter” ✧ EtyAC/MI

Variations

  • MI ✧ Ety/MI; EtyAC/MI
  • IMÍ ✧ EtyAC/IMÍ
  • ✧ EtyAC/IMÍ; EtyAC/MI
  • imi ✧ EtyAC/NDI
  • mi ✧ EtyAC/NDI
Middle Primitive Elvish [Ety/MI; EtyAC/IMÍ; EtyAC/MI; EtyAC/NDI] Group: Eldamo. Published by

ndē̆-

prefix. in, inside

Derivations

  • ᴹ√NE “*in” ✧ EtyAC/NĒ̆
Middle Primitive Elvish [EtyAC/NĒ̆] Group: Eldamo. Published by

Gnomish

ba

preposition. in

Cognates

  • Eq. ve “as, like” ✧ GL/21

Variations

  • b- ✧ GL/21
  • bi- ✧ GL/21
  • b’ ✧ GL/21

bi

preposition. in

Element in

  • G. bin “into” ✧ GL/22 (bin)
  • G. bir “in, within, inside” ✧ GL/22 (bir)
Gnomish [GL/20; GL/22] Group: Eldamo. Published by

Early Primitive Elvish

root. in

Early Primitive Elvish Group: Eldamo. Published by

root. *one

Derivatives

  • Eq. mir “one” ✧ LT1A/Minethlos; QL/061
  • Eq. minqe “eleven” ✧ LT1A/Minethlos; QL/061
  • G. min “one, single” ✧ LT1A/Minethlos

Variations

  • ✧ LT1A/Minethlos
  • mi’i ✧ QL/061 (mi’i)
Early Primitive Elvish [LT1A/Minethlos; QL/061] Group: Eldamo. Published by

imi

root. in, into

Derivatives

  • Eq. int “inwards” ✧ QL/042
  • Eq. imi “in, inside” ✧ QL/042
  • Eq. mi “*in”
  • Eq. mitta “in, into, inwards” ✧ QL/061
  • Eq. mitta- “to enter” ✧ QL/061

Variations

  • MĪ² ✧ QL/061
Early Primitive Elvish [QL/042; QL/061] Group: Eldamo. Published by

Early Quenya

mi

preposition. *in

Derivations

  • ᴱ√IMI “in, into”

Element in

Early Quenya [QL/048] Group: Eldamo. Published by

imi

adverb. in, inside

Derivations

  • ᴱ√IMI “in, into” ✧ QL/042

Phonetic Developments

DevelopmentStagesSources
ᴱ√IMI² > imi[imī] > [imi]✧ QL/042
Early Quenya [QL/042] Group: Eldamo. Published by

tye

pronoun. you

Element in

Variations

  • tye ✧ LFC/030
Early Quenya [LFC/030] Group: Eldamo. Published by