Middle in Different Languages
Discover 'Middle' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
Middle
Middle in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | middel | ||
| The word 'middel' in Afrikaans is derived from the Dutch word 'midden', which originally meant 'in the midst' or 'among'. In English, 'middel' is cognate with 'midst' and 'middle'. | |||
| Amharic | መካከለኛ | ||
| Hausa | tsakiya | ||
| "Tsakiya" originally meant "noon", from the root "tsaka" meaning "to be high" or "to be at the zenith", and was later extended to mean "middle" in a broader sense. | |||
| Igbo | etiti | ||
| The Igbo word 'etiti' can mean the point between the two ends of a line and, metaphorically, a person who serves as an intermediary. | |||
| Malagasy | moyen- | ||
| The Malagasy word "moyen" can also derive from Old French, where it means "moderate" or "sufficient". | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | pakati | ||
| The word "pakati" in Nyanja also means "between" and "among". | |||
| Shona | pakati | ||
| Pakati may also refer to an axis around which something rotates. | |||
| Somali | dhexe | ||
| Its literal meaning is 'half' or 'the one that divides,' reflecting its function as a dividing point. | |||
| Sesotho | bohareng | ||
| The word "bohareng" in Sesotho is also used to refer to the center of something, such as a circle or a group of people. | |||
| Swahili | katikati | ||
| In Swahili, the word "katikati" can also mean "in between" or "amongst". | |||
| Xhosa | phakathi | ||
| The word "phakathi" in Xhosa can also be used to refer to the "inside" of something. | |||
| Yoruba | agbedemeji | ||
| "Agbedemeji" in Yoruba also refers to the "waist" or "navel". | |||
| Zulu | maphakathi | ||
| Maphakathi also refers to a mediator in conflict resolutions or a go-between in a relationship | |||
| Bambara | cɛmancɛ | ||
| Ewe | titina | ||
| Kinyarwanda | hagati | ||
| Lingala | katikati | ||
| Luganda | mumassekkati | ||
| Sepedi | bogareng | ||
| Twi (Akan) | mfimfini | ||
Middle in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | وسط | ||
| In Arabic, "وسط" (middle) is also used as a measure of density, with a heavy density being "كثيف الوسط" and a light density being "خفيف الوسط". | |||
| Hebrew | אֶמצַע | ||
| The Hebrew word "אֶמצַע" has alternate meanings, such as "midst" or "inner part" | |||
| Pashto | وچ | ||
| The word "وچ" in Pashto also means "within" or "in the middle of" something. | |||
| Arabic | وسط | ||
| In Arabic, "وسط" (middle) is also used as a measure of density, with a heavy density being "كثيف الوسط" and a light density being "خفيف الوسط". | |||
Middle in Western European Languages
| Albanian | e mesme | ||
| The Albanian word "e mesme" is also used to refer to a person of intermediate age or status. | |||
| Basque | erdikoa | ||
| Erdikoa (middle in Basque) comes from the word "erdia" (half), and can also mean "halfway" or "in the middle." | |||
| Catalan | mig | ||
| Mig in Catalan derives from the Latin "medius" meaning "middle", but it can also refer to a "waist" or "middle point". | |||
| Croatian | srednji | ||
| In addition to its primary meaning of 'middle', 'srednji' can also mean 'average' or 'moderate' in Croatian. | |||
| Danish | midt | ||
| The word "midt" is etymologically related to the English word "mid" and the German word "mitte". | |||
| Dutch | midden- | ||
| The archaic suffix 'midden-' can also mean 'centre' or 'half'. | |||
| English | middle | ||
| The word 'middle' comes from the Old English word 'middel', which could also mean 'waist' or 'centre' | |||
| French | milieu | ||
| In French, »milieu« can also mean the social or environmental context in which someone lives. | |||
| Frisian | midden | ||
| The Frisian word "midden" also means "garbage heap" and is related to the English word "midden" with the same meaning. | |||
| Galician | medio | ||
| In Galician, "medio" can also mean "half" or "waist." | |||
| German | mitte | ||
| The word 'Mitte' is also used in German geography to indicate the central part of a city or town. | |||
| Icelandic | miðja | ||
| In addition to its literal meaning of "middle", "miðja" is also used in Icelandic to refer to the part of the back below the neck, and in the phrase "miðja úti" meaning "right in the middle of something" | |||
| Irish | lár | ||
| The Irish word 'lár' also denotes the centre of an assembly or group, as opposed to a physical middle point. | |||
| Italian | mezzo | ||
| "Mezzo" can also mean "half" or "medium" in Italian. | |||
| Luxembourgish | mëtt | ||
| The Luxembourgish word "Mëtt" is also used to refer to a type of cured pork sausage or ham. | |||
| Maltese | nofs | ||
| 'Nofs' comes from the Arabic 'nufs' or half, which originally meant 'essence' (of a person) | |||
| Norwegian | midten | ||
| The word "midten" can also mean "the center" or "the middle of something". | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | meio | ||
| Meio is also an adverb meaning halfway or an adjective meaning middling. | |||
| Scots Gaelic | meadhan | ||
| The word meadhan also shares its root with various other terms denoting centrality, such as meadhachainn "mediator" and meadhonair "interceder" and meadhonach, the Gaelic name for the town now known as Denny. | |||
| Spanish | medio | ||
| The Spanish word "medio" can also mean half or environment. | |||
| Swedish | mitten | ||
| The first part of "mitten" is related to "mud" and the latter part to an old word for "glove". Hence, a mitten literally means a "mud glove". | |||
| Welsh | canol | ||
| Old Welsh 'canawl' means 'pipe' or 'groove', a sense which survives in the compound 'canolffos' ('gutter') | |||
Middle in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | сярэдні | ||
| The word "сярэдні" comes from the Old Belarusian word "среда", which means "heart", or "core". | |||
| Bosnian | srednji | ||
| The word 'srednji' is etymologically related to the Proto-Indo-European root *medhyo-, which also gave rise to the English word 'mid'. | |||
| Bulgarian | средна | ||
| The word 'средна' has a variety of meanings in Bulgarian, ranging from 'average' to 'central' and 'neutral'. | |||
| Czech | střední | ||
| The word "střední" can also mean "secondary" or "intermediate". | |||
| Estonian | keskel | ||
| The word "keskel" derives from the Proto-Finnic word "keski", which referred to a midpoint or a central point. | |||
| Finnish | keskellä | ||
| "Keskellä" can also mean "among" or "amidst". | |||
| Hungarian | középső | ||
| The word "középső" can also refer to the middle child in a family, or to an intermediate or average value. | |||
| Latvian | vidū | ||
| The word "vidū" can also refer to the waist, midpoint, or center of something. | |||
| Lithuanian | viduryje | ||
| Related words: viduris (intestines, stomach), vidinis, vidurybė. | |||
| Macedonian | среден | ||
| The word "среден" in Macedonian can also mean "intermediate" or "average". | |||
| Polish | środkowy | ||
| The Polish word "środkowy" is derived from the Proto-Slavic word *sъredъ, which also meant "heart" and "core". | |||
| Romanian | mijloc | ||
| In Romanian, the word "mijloc" also means "way" or "means". | |||
| Russian | средний | ||
| The word "средний" also means "average" or "mediocre". | |||
| Serbian | средњи | ||
| The word "средњи" can also mean "average" or "intermediate". | |||
| Slovak | stredný | ||
| The word "stredný" is also used to describe something that is located in the middle of a group or series, or that is of average quality. | |||
| Slovenian | srednji | ||
| "Srednji" is also used to describe the middle class or the middle ages. | |||
| Ukrainian | середній | ||
| The word “середній” can also mean average, normal or usual in Ukrainian. | |||
Middle in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | মধ্যম | ||
| The Bengali word "মধ্যম" can also mean "medium", "fair", or "moderate". | |||
| Gujarati | મધ્ય | ||
| In Hindi, 'madhya' can also refer to the waist or trunk of the human body. | |||
| Hindi | मध्य | ||
| The word "मध्य" can also refer to "a point on the equator of a celestial sphere" or a "part, section, or chapter of a book." | |||
| Kannada | ಮಧ್ಯದಲ್ಲಿ | ||
| The word "ಮಧ್ಯದಲ್ಲಿ" can also refer to "waist" or the "middle of a river" in Kannada. | |||
| Malayalam | മധ്യത്തിൽ | ||
| The word "മധ്യത്തിൽ" also means "in the center" or "in the middle of" in Malayalam. | |||
| Marathi | मध्यम | ||
| The word "मध्यम" in Marathi can also mean "neutral" or "moderate". | |||
| Nepali | मध्य | ||
| The word "मध्य" also has meanings including "midst", "centre", and "central part". | |||
| Punjabi | ਮੱਧ | ||
| In Punjabi, the word "ਮੱਧ" can also mean a group or assembly. | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | මැද | ||
| The word "මැද" has ancient Indo-Aryan roots, and is found in all three modern Indo-Aryan languages of Sri Lanka, Sinhala, Tamil, and Malayalam. While in Sinhala it has the same meaning as in Sanskrit, "madhya", meaning "middle," in Tamil, "maṯiyal," it denotes "heart" and "mind," and in Malayalam, "maṯyam," it signifies "a fish." | |||
| Tamil | நடுத்தர | ||
| நடுத்தர is also a Tamil word used to describe people or things that represent the average or mainstream. | |||
| Telugu | మధ్య | ||
| The word "మధ్య" can also mean "among" or "between". | |||
| Urdu | وسط | ||
| The word وسط (middle) in Urdu can also mean the center of something, or the waist of a person. | |||
Middle in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 中间 | ||
| 中间 can also mean "mediator" or "middleman", derived from its original meaning of "being in the center". | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 中間 | ||
| 中間 also refers to the intermediate stage or state of something. | |||
| Japanese | 中間 | ||
| Although the literal translation of 「中間」 is "middle", it can also refer to an "interim", "moderate", or even a "middleman". | |||
| Korean | 가운데 | ||
| "가운데" originates from "가두(between/intercalation):우(in)데" (the place intercalated in), and also means the spine (literally, the bone in the middle [of one's body])." | |||
| Mongolian | дунд | ||
| The word "дунд" also means "center" or "middle ground" in Mongolian. | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | အလယ်တန်း | ||
| အလယ်တန်း also refers to a stage in the Burmese education system typically corresponding to grades 5 to 9, which is roughly equivalent to middle school in the United States. | |||
Middle in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | tengah | ||
| "Tengah" also refers to the time of sunrise or dusk, reflecting the time when the sun reaches the middle point in the sky. | |||
| Javanese | tengah | ||
| "Tengah" also means "to be in the middle of something", and is often used to describe a person who is mediating a dispute. | |||
| Khmer | កណ្តាល | ||
| The Khmer word "កណ្តាល" originally meant "to split" or "to divide." | |||
| Lao | ກາງ | ||
| ກາງ can also be the word of origin for a family name and used to indicate an average point in a scale. | |||
| Malay | tengah | ||
| The word tengah can also refer to the waist, which is the central part of the body. | |||
| Thai | กลาง | ||
| The word "กลาง" can also mean "neutral" or "impartial". | |||
| Vietnamese | ở giữa | ||
| 'Ở giữa' also refers to a location or group that is neither on the edge nor at the center. | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | gitna | ||
Middle in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | orta | ||
| Orta can also mean "average" or "ordinary" in Azeri. | |||
| Kazakh | ортаңғы | ||
| The word "ортаңғы" also means "average" or "medium" in Kazakh. | |||
| Kyrgyz | ортоңку | ||
| The word "ортоңку" derives from Proto-Turkic and ultimately derives from Proto-Uralic *ortə "middle". It is still found in many Turkic languages and Uralic languages, such as Mongolian and Finnish. | |||
| Tajik | миёна | ||
| The word "миёна" (middle) can also mean "waist" or "between" in Tajik. | |||
| Turkmen | ortasy | ||
| Uzbek | o'rta | ||
| The word "o'rta" can also refer to the equator, the waist, or a median value. | |||
| Uyghur | ئوتتۇرى | ||
Middle in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | waena | ||
| Waena may also mean "center, hub, or middle of the body" in Hawaiian. | |||
| Maori | waenga | ||
| Waenga also denotes the space between people, physical objects, or abstract concepts such as time or knowledge. | |||
| Samoan | ogatotonu | ||
| The word 'ogatotonu' can also refer to a medium-sized piece of something, such as a piece of fruit or a piece of meat. | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | gitna | ||
| "Gitna" shares the same root as the word "tigilan", meaning a place where one stops or remains. | |||
Middle in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | chika | ||
| Guarani | mbyte | ||
Middle in International Languages
| Esperanto | meza | ||
| The word 'meza' also means 'average' or 'moderate' in Esperanto. | |||
| Latin | medium | ||
| In Latin, "medium" also denotes an arbitrator or intermediary, linking its literal meaning of "middle" to its figurative sense of connection. | |||
Middle in Others Languages
| Greek | μέση | ||
| Originally, the word 'μέση' (middle) signified the waist or belly and referred to the middle part of the body. | |||
| Hmong | nruab nrab | ||
| Nruab nrab is also the central section of the house where people sleep. | |||
| Kurdish | navîn | ||
| The word "navîn" in Kurdish can also refer to the act of changing or renewing something. | |||
| Turkish | orta | ||
| "Orta" can come from Arabic (وسطة; wasta) for "middle"} | |||
| Xhosa | phakathi | ||
| The word "phakathi" in Xhosa can also be used to refer to the "inside" of something. | |||
| Yiddish | מיטן | ||
| The Yiddish word "מיטן" can also refer to a meeting or an assembly. | |||
| Zulu | maphakathi | ||
| Maphakathi also refers to a mediator in conflict resolutions or a go-between in a relationship | |||
| Assamese | মাজ | ||
| Aymara | chika | ||
| Bhojpuri | मध्य | ||
| Dhivehi | މެދު | ||
| Dogri | बश्कार | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | gitna | ||
| Guarani | mbyte | ||
| Ilocano | tengnga | ||
| Krio | midul | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | ناوەڕاست | ||
| Maithili | मध्य | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯃꯌꯥꯏ | ||
| Mizo | lai | ||
| Oromo | gidduu | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ମ middle ି | ||
| Quechua | chawpi | ||
| Sanskrit | मध्यं | ||
| Tatar | урта | ||
| Tigrinya | ማእኸል | ||
| Tsonga | xikarhi | ||