Meander
verb
- To take a long, twisting, curving path
- To move about without focus or purpose; to roam or change easily and aimlessly
noun
- A twist or curve in a river or other path (usually plural)
- A long, roundabout excursion, often with little purpose
Usage
Ah, the Lazy River: the most wonderful waterpark ride for the indolent among us. After a long day of riding gigantic slides, standing on even more gigantic lines, and trying not to swallow questionable pool water, the Lazy River's meanders are more welcome than the softest bedsheets. There's no fear involved, no skill, no complications; you just give yourself over to the current and let your inner tube meander where it will. And the best part? While you drift along past grinning tikis and sublimely fake palm trees, your thoughts are free to meander too, as aimless and relaxed as the Lazy River itself.
We'll try not to get sidetracked here: meander commonly functions as a verb to refer to the taking of a twisty, purposelessly circuitous track. A path or road that meanders stretches out in bends, curves, and spirals, taking strange or unnecessary detours and maybe even doubling back on itself. Winding, lazily flowing rivers (even those found at waterparks) are among the most common things said to meander in this way, but the word can also be used to talk about the courses of things like country roads and mountain passes.
Unless you're navigating a river, though, you'd probably encounter meander in reference to aimless, nonlinear roaming. If you set out on a walk with the intent to meander, you've already kind of defeated yourself, as the word implies a movement without any sort of purpose, motivation, or logic. Meandering is also often thought of as slow and easy, perhaps a result of a relaxed or confused mind. This is the kind of ambling you might do when you've got absolutely no clear thoughts; you're just sort of heading wherever the mood strikes, stopping to smell any flower that attracts you and letting your feet do the thinking.
Meander is also commonly used a little more figuratively to describe rambling in speech or thought. When giving an important speech or trying to write a poignant letter, it's probably not a good idea to meander from topic to topic, as doing so might make your message boring or nonsensical. However, allowing your mind to meander from time to time can be both relaxing and stimulate creative thinking, as everyone who's ever tried freewriting knows. So when you're actually composing that important speech or letter, or even just trying to come up with ideas for fun, don't be afraid to let your thoughts wander in circles!
Meander can sometimes function as a noun, too, although this type of usage isn't especially widespread. You might hear someone describe the bends and detours of a river or trail as its meanders (technically, you could call just one such bend a meander, but here the word's mostly used in the plural to refer to curvature as a whole). A meander can also be a long, unfocused trip taken at a gentle pace, full of distractions, changes in course, and general aimlessness. If you were to take your dog to the park and just follow him as he sniffed around, you'd be engaged in a meander.
Example: Unaware that the trail would meander so much, we took much longer to finish our hike than we expected.
Example: Watching the bear at the zoo meander around its enclosure made Jane feel a little sorry for it.
Example: The long hallway's frustrating meanders seem to defy the laws of space and time.
Example: To his surprise, Frank's meander brought him to a section of town where he'd never been.
Origin
There's a pretty good reason why meander is so often related to rivers. The word's inspiration comes from the Greek Maiandros, which refers to a long, twisting river in present-day Turkey now known as the River Menderes. The Romans would then derive from Maindros the Latin word meander, which meant "a bending, circuitous path." By the 1570s, English-speakers were using meander as a noun to figuratively refer to complexities and illogical, confusing developments, a usage which has since fallen out of fashion (though its essence lives on in the word's verb form).
Meander's first uses in English as a verb are attributed to the early 17th century, when it was used in reference to rivers to mean "to run in a bending, intricate course." Interestingly, by the 1820s this application of meander had engendered another use of the word as a noun, this time meaning "a person who moves on (or down) a river." Although that meaning would grow obsolete, it did, by the 1830s, give rise to the modern verb meaning of "moving about in loops and curves or without purpose or thought."
Derivative Words
Meandrous: This adjective characterizes something as wandering and undirected either in path or in focus.
Example: Following the elderly professor's meandrous lecture became difficult.
Example: Having spent an hour and a half driving over the meandrous country roads, I pulled out a map to make sure I was going in the right direction.
Meanders: This simple present form of the verb meander is used when a singular third-person subject wanders aimlessly or follows an intricately bending path.
Example: The stream meanders through woods and plains before reaching a lake.
Meandered: This preterit form of meander is used when a subject rambled or moved in a twisting, intricate fashion in the past.
Example: The lexicographer's various examples meandered from subject to subject.
Meandering: The progressive form of meander is used when a subject is currently moving in a circuitous fashion or roaming without clear purpose.
Example: Every morning finds the rooster meandering contentedly about his pen.
In Literature
From Thomas Hardy's Tess of the d'Urbervilles - A Pure Woman:
Her journey back was rather a meander than a march. It had no sprightliness, no purpose; only a tendency. Along the tedious length of Benvill Lane she began to grow tired, and she leant upon gates and paused by milestones.
In this description, Hardy uses meander to describe Tess's long, disillusioned walk after having her boots taken by strangers (who thought they had been left by a tramp).
Comments
Though also the name of a river, the ancient Greeks sometimes used the term Maiandros to refer to intricate, interlocking patterns, such as those made with bundles of string. This convention still has a little influence on the modern English meander: although somewhat uncommon, the word is sometimes used as a noun that describes a decorative arrangement of lines or curving shapes.
Meander is also sometimes given as an alternate name for the Greek river god Maiandros (or Maeander).
Mnemonic
Meander wanders without a plan
Tags
Rivers, Water, Mythology, Greek
Bring out the linguist in you! What is your own interpretation of meander. Did you use meander in a game? Provide an example sentence or a literary quote.