# medium

Pronunciation: say "MEE-dee-uhm" /ˈmiː.di.əm/

## Adjective

1. Of a size, degree, or amount that falls between high and low extremes.
   - Simple: In the middle in size, amount, or strength: not too big or small, and not too much or too little.
   - _He prefers a medium roast, somewhere between mild and dark._
   - _Keep the burner at a medium heat so the sauce doesn't scorch._
7. Of meat, cooked beyond medium-rare but short of medium-well, typically leaving the center warm and pink.
   - Simple: Cooked so meat is pink and warm in the middle, not red and not fully cooked.
   - _She ordered the steak medium, just pink at the center._
   - _A medium steak shows a band of pink when you slice into it._

## Noun

2. A format through which information is communicated or presented to an audience.
   - Simple: A way of sharing or showing information to people.
   - _Print remains a respected medium for long-form journalism._
   - _New digital media have changed how stories reach younger audiences._
3. A means, channel, or go-between through which communication or commerce is carried on, or by which an aim is achieved.
   - Simple: A way or channel used to do something or reach a goal.
   - _The internet has become the primary medium for global commerce._
   - _Protest art served as her medium for challenging the government._
4. A means of artistic expression, such as a material like oil, pastel, or clay, or a method or style.
   - Simple: A material or method an artist uses to make art, such as paint or clay.
   - _Watercolor is a demanding medium that allows little correction._
   - _She moved between several media before settling on sculpture._
8. The middle size in a range of sizes, especially of clothing; a garment of that size, or a person who wears it.
   - Simple: The middle size, usually of clothes, between small and large. Something in that size.
   - _The shirts are stocked in medium and large only._
   - _Medium fits most adults comfortably._
9. A person who supposedly conveys information from the spirit world to the living.
   - Simple: A person who claims to pass messages from dead people to the living.
   - _The grieving widow visited a medium hoping to reach her husband._
   - _Several mediums gathered for the séance in the parlor._
5. A substance or space in which something exists or through which signals, waves, or forces travel, such as air, water, or a solvent.
   - Simple: The material or space around something, or that sound, light, or other waves move through.
   - _Sound waves cannot travel without a medium such as air or water._
   - _Different media slow light by different amounts._
6. Any substance, structure, or setting that sustains organisms or allows them to grow or be cultured.
   - Simple: A material or place where living things can live and grow.
   - _Gardeners often add sand to improve the growing medium._
   - _The lab grew the bacteria on a jelly-like medium in shallow dishes._
10. A middle position, degree, or rank between two extremes.
   - Simple: A point or level halfway between two extremes.
   - _The coach struck a happy medium between hard practice and plenty of rest._
   - _After hours of talks, the two sides finally reached a happy medium on pay._
12. A liquid base that carries the pigment in paint.
   - Simple: The liquid in paint that holds the color and lets it spread.
   - _Oil painters thin their pigment with a glossy medium._
   - _The choice of medium affects how quickly the paint dries._

## Adverb

11. To a middle degree; neither very much nor very little.
   - Simple: In a middle amount, not a lot and not a little.
   - _I always have my bagel toasted medium, so it's crisp but not too dark._
   - _I ordered the curry medium spicy so my kids could eat it too._

## Noun

13. An average; sometimes specifically the mathematical mean of a set of values. *(dated)*
   - Simple: An average amount or value worked out from several numbers.
14. Half a pint of Guinness, with the term also used for other stouts in some regions. *(dated, Ireland)*
   - Simple: A half-pint glass of stout, such as Guinness.

## Adjective

15. Equal to the arithmetic average of a set of values. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: Equal to the plain average of a set of numbers, by old usage.

## Other meanings

- (noun) The material, such as ceramic pieces, that a mass finishing or abrasive blasting process uses to finish a workpiece's surface.
- (noun) The term in a syllogism that appears in both premises and connects the two extremes; the middle or mean term.

## Origin

Borrowed from Latin medium, the neuter form of medius ("middle"), which goes back through Proto-Italic to a Proto-Indo-European root *médʰyos ("between"). It is related to the English word middle.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/medium (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).