media

1 of 3

noun (1)

me·dia ˈmē-dē-ə

plural medias

often attributive

Synonyms of media next

singular or plural in construction : mass media

medias plural : members of the mass media

: a medium of cultivation, conveyance, or expression

Air is a media that conveys sound.

especially : medium sense 2a

Is media singular or plural?: Usage Guide

The singular media and its plural medias seem to have originated in the field of advertising over 70 years ago; they are still so used without stigma in that specialized field. In most other applications media is used as a plural of medium. The popularity of the word in references to the agencies of mass communication is leading 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

This use is not as well established as the mass-noun use of data and is likely to incur criticism especially in writing.

media

2 of 3

noun (2)

me·dia ˈmē-dē-ə

plural mediae ˈmē-dē-ˌē

[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 sense 2) stop (see stop entry 2 sense 1b)

[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

media

3 of 3

plural of medium

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

With a large media presence and television cameras pointed at them, residents lined up for the opportunity to express their support and concerns — in person and via phone — about the progress and process of the reparations movement. —

Curtis Bunn, NBC News, 4 Mar. 2023 Murdaugh, 54, maintained his innocence amid intense news media coverage and fascination across the country. —

Dan Rosenzweig-ziff, Washington Post, 3 Mar. 2023 National Review is a strongly pro-life publication in a media environment where that stance is all too rare. —

Ramesh Ponnuru, National Review, 3 Mar. 2023 The warden, contacted by the AJC, declined to discuss the killings and referred all questions to the GDC media relations office. —

Jennifer Peebles, ajc, 2 Mar. 2023 The first media timeout of the game came before Milwaukee missed a shot. —

Journal Sentinel, 2 Mar. 2023 That doesn’t include what would happen if the Pac-12 lost schools to other conferences, lowering its media value. —

Dallas News, 2 Mar. 2023 During the media call, company executives also urged government officials to help reduce costs by passing a $35 monthly insulin cap and other insulin makers and insurance companies to adopt cost cutting measures. —

Binghui Huang, The Indianapolis Star, 1 Mar. 2023 View full post on Instagram Gomez briefly quit TikTok following all the fan and media attention her additional TikTok comments regarding the bullying received. —

Alyssa Bailey, ELLE, 1 Mar. 2023 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'media.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.