Description:

The term 'mella' comes from early period Common and is of unknown origin - it may have been a fan-coined word, a word that Davidson himself created in conjunction with the fan community, or it may be a loan word. Its base meaning is 'glue', but aside form expected sense of stick, stuck, trap, trapped, it can also br applied to people with a meaning like stubborn or intransigent - this sense is attested early and may be a clue to the word's origin.

Noun:

As a noun, 'mella' is glue or paste, a sticky substance which often has the intention of binding things together. It can also apply to natural sticky resins.

Verb:

As a verb, 'mella' is an intrasitive pali verb meaning to be stuck. The thing stuck to can be added with the preposition 'e' (not 'u' as English speakers are often tempted), and the substance doing the sticking can be added with the prepostion 'ceo'.

The causative skurun form adds an ergative subject which is causing the absolutive patient to become stuck. The substance doing the sticking can be promoted to a core argument this way, or an agent which is sticking two things together can be the subject. In this sense it can be used to mean to trap someone or something, or to get them into a difficult situation.

Modifier:

As a modifier, 'mellas' can mean stuck or trapped, and it can also mean sticky. The sense of sticky can be made specific using the form 'mellacas'. This form can have a separate idiomatic reading of stubborn or instransigent, someone it is impossible to advance a discussion with.