media

¹

[mee-dee-uh]

noun

1. a plural of medium.

2. (usually used with a plural verb),  the means of communication, as radio and television, newspapers, magazines, and the internet, that reach or influence people widely.

   The media are covering the speech tonight.

adjective

1. pertaining to or concerned with such means.

   a job in media research.

media

²

[mee-dee-uh]

noun

plural

mediae 

1. Greek Grammar.,  a voiced plosive, as β, δ, γ.

2. Anatomy.,  the middle layer of an artery or lymphatic vessel.

3. Entomology.,  a longitudinal vein in the middle portion of the wing of an insect.

Media

³

[mee-dee-uh]

noun

1. an ancient country in W Asia, S of the Caspian Sea, corresponding generally to NW Iran. Ecbatana.

media

¹

/ ˈmɛdɪə /

noun

1. the middle layer of the wall of a blood or lymph vessel

2. one of the main veins in the wing of an insect

3. phonetics

   1. a consonant whose articulation lies midway between that of a voiced and breathed speech sound

   2. a consonant pronounced with weak voice, as c in French second

media

²

/ ˈmiːdɪə /

noun

1. a plural of medium

2. the means of communication that reach large numbers of people, such as television, newspapers, and radio

adjective

1. of or relating to the mass media

   media hype

Media

³

/ ˈmiːdɪə /

noun

1. an ancient country of SW Asia, south of the Caspian Sea: inhabited by the Medes; overthrew the Assyrian Empire in 612 _bc in alliance with Babylonia; conquered by Cyrus the Great in 550 _bc ; corresponds to present-day NW Iran

Usage

Media, like data, is the plural form of a word borrowed directly from Latin. The singular, medium, early developed the meaning “an intervening agency, means, or instrument” and was first applied to newspapers two centuries ago. In the 1920s media began to appear as a singular collective noun, sometimes with the plural medias. This singular use is now common in the fields of mass communication and advertising, but it is not frequently found outside them: The media is (or are ) not antibusiness.

When media refers to the mass media, it is sometimes treated as a singular form, as in: the media has shown great interest in these events. Many people think this use is incorrect and that media should always be treated as a plural form: the media have shown great interest in these events

Word History and Origins

Origin of media¹

First recorded in 1920–25

Origin of media²

First recorded in 1835–45; from Late Latin (grammar sense only), noun use of feminine singular of Latin medius “middle”; mid ¹ ( def. )

Word History and Origins

Origin of media¹

C19: from Latin medius middle

Example Sentences

The image is partially the result of social media platforms like Facebook encouraging users to post their everyday mundanities, such as winding down with a glass of wine at the end of the night.

Read more on Salon

Images widely shared on social media highlight the rowdy lines at petrol stations in Bamako, with people waiting for hours.

Read more on BBC

"It's something people are aware of. There's chatter in the changing room here and there about it because it's something that's been talked about so much in the media," the 23-year-old told BBC Sport.

Read more on BBC

"When Rick was boxing, there was no social media so you couldn't build yourself that way," said Speak.

Read more on BBC

He changed his social media profiles following the contact to remove his surname to make him harder to find, the court heard.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• news 
• publishing 
• radio 
• television 

When To Use

Plural word for media

Media is the plural form of the singular noun medium. The plurals of several other singular words that end in -um are also formed in this way, including memorandum/memoranda, datum/data, and bacterium/bacteria. The irregular plural media derives directly from its original pluralization in Latin. While less common, the standard English plural form mediums is also valid for some definitions of this term, such as in the sense of “a person through whom the spirits of the dead are alleged to be able to contact the living.” Like data, media can be treated as either a singular collective noun or a plural noun, depending on context and meaning. For instance, when describing mass media (“a collection of different media that a general population can access, like newspapers and radio programs”), media can be treated as a singular collective noun.