median

1 of 6

noun (1)

me·​di·​an ˈmē-dē-ən 

1

: a medial (see medial sense 2b) part (such as a vein or nerve)

2

a

: a value in an ordered set of values below and above which there is an equal number of values or which is the arithmetic mean of the two middle values if there is no one middle number

b

: a vertical line that divides the histogram of a frequency distribution into two parts of equal area

c

: a value of a random variable for which all greater values make the cumulative distribution function greater than one half and all lesser values make it less than one half

3

a

: a line from a vertex (see vertex sense 2) of a triangle to the midpoint of the opposite side

b

: a line joining the midpoints of the nonparallel sides of a trapezoid (see trapezoid sense 1a)

4

: median strip

median

2 of 6

adjective

1

: being in the middle or in an intermediate position : medial

2

: lying in the plane dividing a bilateral animal into right and left halves

3

: relating to or constituting a statistical median

4

: produced without occlusion along the lengthwise middle line of the tongue

medianly adverb

Median

3 of 6

noun (2)

Me·​di·​an ˈmē-dē-ən 

: the Iranian language of ancient Media

media

4 of 6

plural of medium

media

5 of 6

noun (3)

me·​dia ˈmē-dē-ə 

plural medias

1

a

singular or plural in construction : the newspapers, radio and television stations, websites, etc., through which information is communicated to the public : mass media

We're posting things that mainstream media aren't publishing.

—Ameer Al-Khatahtbeh, quoted at wired.com

… traditional media is suffering with the rise of social and simultaneous decline of newspapers.

—latimes.com

—usually used with the

The event attracted a lot of attention from the media.

the news media

—often used before another noun

The event attracted a lot of media attention.

see also social media

b

or less commonly medias plural : members of the mass media (such as news outlets)

The event attracted a lot of media.

… has detailed files on British journalists and will certainly not be short on information on the media who are travelling to Africa …

—Owen Slot

… even the mainstream medias are shifting their tone and coverage of this disturbing event.

—Rappin Thomas Wyatt

2

: a medium of cultivation, conveyance, or expression

traditional medias [=(more commonly) media] such as newspapers and magazines

an artist who works in different medias [=(more commonly) media]

Air is a media [=(more commonly) medium] that conveys sound.

Is media singular or plural?: Usage Guide

The singular media and its plural medias seem to have originated in the field of advertising, where they are still used without stigma. In most other contexts media is used as the plural of medium. However, the popularity of the word in references to the agencies of mass communication has lead to the formation of a mass noun, construed as a singular.

… there's no basis for it. You know, the news media gets on to something …

—Edwin Meese 3d

… the media is less interested in the party's policies …

—James Lewis, Guardian Weekly

Although it is increasingly common, this use may incur criticism especially in formal writing.

media

6 of 6

noun (4)

me·​dia ˈmē-dē-ə 

plural mediae ˈmē-dē-ˌē 

1

[Late Latin, from Latin, feminine of medius; from the voiced stops' being regarded as intermediate between the tenues and the aspirates] : a voiced (see voiced entry 1 sense 2) stop (see stop entry 2 sense 1b)

2

[New Latin, from Latin] : the middle coat of the wall of a blood or lymph (see lymph sense 2) vessel consisting chiefly of circular muscle fibers

Did you know?

People often use the word average without realizing that there are two common forms of average. Suppose you want to find the average net worth of a group of people—that is, the average value of everything they possess. To find one type of average, called the mean, you'd simply add up the total value of money and property of everyone in the group and divide it by the number of people. To find the other type, called the median, you'd identify the net worth of the person who is richer than half the people and poorer than the other half. So if Warren Buffett drove through a tiny village in India, the mean net worth of those in the village would suddenly rise to perhaps a billion dollars, but their median net worth would remain close to zero. Which figure would be more meaningful?

Synonyms of median

Adjective

• average

Choose the Right Synonym for median

average, mean, median, norm mean something that represents a middle point.

average is the quotient obtained by dividing the sum total of a set of figures by the number of figures.

scored an average of 85 on tests

mean may be the simple average or it may represent value midway between two extremes.

a high of 70° and a low of 50° give a mean of 60°

median applies to the value that represents the point at which there are as many instances above as there are below.

average of a group of persons earning 3, 4, 5, 8, and 10 dollars an hour is 6 dollars, whereas the median is 5 dollars

norm means the average of performance of a significantly large group, class, or grade.

scores about the norm for fifth grade arithmetic

Examples of median in a Sentence

Adjective

What is the median price of homes in this area?

the median price of a home in the area

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

In Manhattan, the city’s most expensive borough, the median asking rent was $4,995. — Samantha Delouya, CNN Money, 24 Aug. 2026

The median shared favorite trades at a price-to-earnings premium of 25 times, compared with the median of 19 times for a typical S & P 500 stock. — Deena Zaidi, CNBC, 24 Aug. 2026

Adjective

Golf Channel’s median-age viewer is in their early to mid 60s, Knapp estimated. — Tony Maglio, HollywoodReporter, 25 Aug. 2026

Even if the surcharge caused higher-income residents to vacate their apartments (which likely are over 50 years old and in need of substantial rehab), the median rents probably exceed the 30% of income level of New Yorkers most in need of housing. — Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 25 Aug. 2026

Noun

Social media threads are filled with people arguing over whether Pluto should be grandfathered into the planetary club, whether dwarf planets are simply another kind of planet, and whether the distinction matters at all. — Stefanie Waldek, Space.com, 24 Aug. 2026

And that refusal has given rise to suspicions that the network is part of a media campaign to bolster the Iranian government’s opposition. — Cora Engelbrecht, New Yorker, 24 Aug. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English mediane, from Late Latin mediana (vena) median (vein), from feminine of Latin medianus in the middle, central, from medius middle — more at mid

Adjective

Latin medianus — see median entry 1

Noun (3)

plural of medium

First Known Use

Noun (1)

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1592, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

1813, in the meaning defined above

Noun (3)

1922, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Noun (4)

1841, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing median

• median nerve
• median strip

Rhymes for median

• comedian
• submedian
• paramedian

Kids Definition

median

1 of 2 noun

me·​di·​an ˈmēd-ē-ən 

1

: a value in a series arranged from smallest to largest below and above which there are an equal number of values or which is the average of the two middle values if there is no one middle value

the median of the set 1, 3, 7, 12, 19 is 7 and the median of the set 2, 5, 7, 15 is 6

2

: a line drawn from the vertex of a triangle to the midpoint of the opposite side

median

2 of 2 adjective

1

: being in the middle or in an intermediate position

2

: relating to or making up a median

Etymology

Noun

from Latin mediana vena "median vein (a large vein in the arm)," from earlier Latin medianus "being in the middle," from medius "middle" — related to intermediate, mean entry 3, meridian

Medical Definition

median

1 of 2 noun

me·​di·​an ˈmēd-ē-ən 

1

: a medial part (as a vein or nerve)

2

a

: a value in an ordered set of values below and above which there is an equal number of values or which is the arithmetic mean of the two middle values if there is no one middle number

b

: a vertical line that divides the histogram of a frequency distribution into two parts of equal area

median

2 of 2 adjective

: situated in the middle

specifically : lying in a plane dividing a bilateral animal into right and left halves

Geographical Definition

Media

geographical name

Me·​dia ˈmē-dē-ə 

ancient country and province of the Persian Empire in the northwestern part of modern Iran

Median

ˈmē-dē-ən 

adjective or noun