Metheglins

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A type of beverage that is a spiced mead, often flavored with various herbs and spices
2. A drink made from honey, water, and additional flavorings, typically enjoyed for its distinctive taste and aromatic qualities
3. An alcoholic concoction created by fermenting honey and water, enhanced with botanicals to create unique flavor profiles

Etymology: "Metheglins" is simply the plural of "metheglin", the honey-based drink. The singular traces to Welsh "meddyglyn", built from "meddyg", meaning "doctor" or "healer", and "llyn", meaning "liquor". The Welsh "meddyg" itself comes from Latin "medicus", so a drink that began as a healer's remedy carries a Roman medical term inside its name. The "liquor" element is the older half of the compound. "Llyn" is related to the Irish "lionn" and the Scottish Gaelic "leann", all words for an alcoholic drink, so the Welsh name joins a Latin borrowing for healing with a native Celtic word for drink. The sense of the drink as medicinal is built into the word itself rather than added later.

Synonyms: meads, honey wines, fermented drinks, alcohols, beverages