middle

The story

1. Proto-Germanic*midjō
2. Proto-Germanic*midlą
3. Old Englishmiddel
4. Middle Englishmyddel
5. English todaymiddle

From Middle English myddel, middel, from Old English middel (“middle, centre, waist”), from Proto-Germanic *midlą, *midilą, *medalą (“middle”), a diminutive of Proto-Germanic *midjō (“middle, midst”) (compare *midjaz (“mid, middle”, adjective)), from Proto-Indo-European *médʰyos (“between, in the middle, middle”). Cognates Cognate with Saterland Frisian Middel (“middle”), West Frisian mul (“middle”), Dutch middel (“means; medicine, cure”), German mittel (“middle”, adjective), Mittel (“means; medicament, remedy”, noun), Luxembourgish Mëttel (“means, method; medicament”), Vilamovian mytuł (“middle”), Yiddish מיטל (mitl, “middle”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål and Norwegian Nynorsk middel (“means”), Icelandic meðal (“average; means, medicine”), Swedish medel (“average, mean, middle”). See also mid.

Words from the same roots

First known use, by meaning

• 17th–18th c. To take a middle view of.
• 19th c. To double (a rope) into two equal portions; to fold in the middle.