mid

Meaning

1. Denoting the middle part.
2. Occupying a middle position; middle.
3. Made with a somewhat elevated position of some certain part of the tongue, in relation to the palate; midway between the high and the low; said of certain vowel sounds, such as, [e o ɛ ɔ].
4. Mediocre; of middling quality.
5. Trashy; low-quality.

Frequency

Pronounced as (IPA)

/mɪd/

Etymology

From Middle English mid, midde, from Old English midd (“mid, middle, midway”), from Proto-West Germanic *midi, from Proto-Germanic *midjaz (“mid, middle”, adjective), from Proto-Indo-European *médʰyos (“between, in the middle, middle”). Cognate with Dutch midden (“in the middle”), German Mitte (“center, middle, mean”), Icelandic miður (“middle”, adjective), Latin medius (“middle”, noun and adjective). See also middle. The slang sense may be influenced by terms such as middling and midwit.