Also called middle plane. Also called middle ground. Fine Arts. the represented space between the foreground and background in paintings, drawings, etc.
(in track) a race distance ranging from 400 meters or 440 yards to 1 mile.
First recorded in 1805–15
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
To the left and right, a dense forest frames the scene, while farther off, in the middle distance, a few lonely plantations and houses can barely be made out.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 1, 2026
Norris clung to Verstappen like a limpet and then overtook him with imperious ease before the first pit stops, cruising off into the middle distance thereafter.
From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2024
“To see this entire world, do this literally: Mold the play into a medium-sized ball, set it before you in the middle distance, and squint your eyes,” she wrote.
From New York Times ● Jun. 18, 2024
He stared into the middle distance and scrolled through his phone.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 26, 2023
All burst in the air before reaching her coach, the pieces of metal falling harmlessly in the middle distance.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
Gjert had no background in athletics, but the former logistics manager poured himself into constructing a gruelling high-mileage programme to turn his seven children into a family band of elite middle-distance contenders.
From BBC ● Jun. 16, 2025
In fact, several forces that were at work when Nuguse and Ingebrigtsen raced have been electrifying all of middle-distance running.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 16, 2025
This generation of milers is also supremely talented, of course, forming a new golden age of middle-distance running.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 16, 2025
An unfiltered chat with middle-distance runner Josh Kerr about rivals and winning gold.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2024
Indeed, it was nearly dark already, and in the nebulous middle-distance a laughing jackass was indulging in his evening peal.
From Stingaree by Hornung, E. W. (Ernest William)
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
