midst

noun

ˈmidst How to pronounce midst (audio)
ˈmitst
1
: the interior or central part or point : middle
in the midst of the forest
2
: a position of proximity to the members of a group
a traitor in our midst
3
: the condition of being surrounded or beset
in the midst of his troubles
4
: a period of time about the middle of a continuing act or condition
in the midst of a meal
midst preposition

Examples of midst in a Sentence

The river passes through the midst of the city. a bustling city in the midst of the desert We are in the midst of a terrible war. They were in the midst of remodeling their house. The region is currently in the midst of a terrible drought. We never gave up hope in the midst of our troubles. See More
Recent Examples on the Web Some revealed chummy conversations with Washington journalists; others showed a president who in the midst of Watergate was too drunk to talk to the British prime minister. David E. Sanger, New York Times, 30 Nov. 2023 The shootdown occurred Wednesday morning local time, the official said, and came in the midst of rising threats from Yemen toward U.S. ships operating in the region. WSJ, 30 Nov. 2023 Awarded to those in the midst of, or on the cusp of their breakthrough moment, the year-long initiative includes one-to-one meetings and career guidance, full voting membership, access to BAFTA events and screenings, as well as networking events, both in the U.K. and internationally. Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 29 Nov. 2023 The latter community, small but prominent, is in the midst of a potential extinction event. Ishaan Tharoor, Washington Post, 29 Nov. 2023 Yet Williamsport is only now in the midst of digitizing its processes and education about these new tools will be critical, said Mr. Yoder, who is taking part in the national MetroLab discussions and looking forward to the guidance that results. Carey L. Biron, The Christian Science Monitor, 29 Nov. 2023 Arkansas clearly took a step back from its previous seasons under Pittman, who is now in the midst of making player and staff evaluations and searching for an offensive coordinator in a compressed time frame. Tom Murphy, arkansasonline.com, 28 Nov. 2023 The early signing period was added five years ago, creating more urgency for schools in the midst of coaching searches. Kirk Kenney, San Diego Union-Tribune, 28 Nov. 2023 Burnham created Inside from his Los Angeles home in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Xander Zellner, Billboard, 21 Nov. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'midst.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English middest, alteration of middes, short for amiddes amid

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of midst was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near midst

Cite this Entry

“Midst.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/midst. Accessed 9 Dec. 2023.

Kids Definition

midst

1 of 2 noun
ˈmidst
1
: the middle part or period
in the midst of the forest
2
: a condition of being near or among the members of a group
a traitor in our midst
3
: the condition of being surrounded
in the midst of our troubles

midst

2 of 2 preposition
(ˌ)midst
: amid

More from Merriam-Webster on midst

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