Definition of "meta" in English

noun

1. (video games) Clipping of metagame.

   • I don't think the character will be part of the meta even with the recent buffs.

2. (informal) Clipping of metaoidioplasty.

3. (informal) Clipping of metamour.

4. (fandom slang) Clipping of metanalysis: metanalysis or metacommentary focused on media, fandom, or related topics, typically presented as an essay or dialogue.

   • 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.
   • It wasn’t until I dug into post-season-3 Sherlock meta in January of 2014 that I started to encounter "the Discourse."

adjective

1. (informal) Self-referential; structured analogously (structured by relationships), but at a higher level.

   • Suppose you have a genie that grants you three wishes. If you wish for infinite wishes, that is a meta wish.
   • Suppose you have a homework task where you need to edit a wiki page and upload a screenshot of this entry underneath the word meta as an example of what meta is.

2. (video games) Prominent in the metagame; effective and frequently used in competitive gameplay.

   • I don't think the character will be meta even with the recent buffs.

noun

1. Boundary marker.

2. (historical) Either of the conical columns at each end of an Ancient Roman circus.