[mere] n [ME, fr. OE--more at marine] (bef. 12c) chiefly Brit: an expanse of standing water: lake, pool
[2]mere n [ME, fr. OE maere; akin to ON landamaeri borderland] (bef. 12c): boundary; also: landmark [3]mere adj, superlative mer.est [ME, fr. L merus; akin to OE amerian to purify and perh. to Gk marmairein to sparkle--more at morn] (1536) 1: having no admixture: pure
2. obs: being nothing less than: absolute
3: being nothing more than "a ~ mortal" -- mere.ly adv