General :: Bash Scripts - While And If Command

I have following BASH script?

Code:
i=0
while [ $i -lt $ARRAYLEN ]; do
if ["$META1" = "$array"];
then
META1FLAG=1
else
META1FLAG=0
fi
let i++
done
While $array contains a word like "start"

When I run the script, In the terminal I either get the response:
myscript.sh: line 3: [: missing ']'
or if $META1 contains the same word "start, I get:
myscrit.sh: line 3: [start: command not found

The purpose of the script is to evaluate a parameter that a user might include when they invoke my script, and compare it to some data that $META1 might contain. If they match I want to set a flag and later launch Xine. If they do not match, I want to set a flag to zero and do something else. I'm a bit lost as to what the responses are trying to tell me in the terminal window when I run this script.