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• media
  media

  noun

  a plural of medium.
• Media
  Media

  noun

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

media

¹ American  

[mee-dee-uh] / ˈmi di ə /

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.

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adjective

1. pertaining to or concerned with such means.

   a job in media research.

media ² American  

[mee-dee-uh] / ˈmi di ə /

noun

• mediae
  plural

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.

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Media ³ American  

[mee-dee-uh] / ˈmi di ə /

noun

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

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media ¹ British  

/ 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

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media ² British  

/ ˈmiːdɪə /

noun

1. a plural of medium

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

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adjective

1. of or relating to the mass media

   media hype

Media ³ British  

/ 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

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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

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• mediae
  plural

Etymology

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”; cf. mid ¹ ( def. )

Explanation

All the various communications you use to get your news — magazines, websites, radio, and TV, among others — are collectively known as media. Many public figures thrive on media attention. This word is frequently used as a mass noun: "I wish the media would focus more on local news than on celebrity gossip!" You can use it for the system of news organizations that put important stories in front of the public, as well as for the journalists themselves. Philosopher and theorist Marshall McLuhan is credited with the first use of this word to mean "communication channels," in 1954.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

media Media mediae

He also was captured on a video posted to social media that showed him hitting a blocking sled at UCLA.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 30, 2026

"I don't want to be picking up the paper tomorrow morning or mid-afternoon on social media and seeing a few clicks. You've won a good series, just have a quiet night."

From BBC ● Aug. 30, 2026

Several rescued passengers told local media a blast had gone off at the bow of the ferry before it rolled over, and said the boat had an insufficient supply of life-vests.

From Barron's ● Aug. 30, 2026

The whole affair builds into a major national trial and media circus that stands to expose Acme’s misdeeds and change the way that the company, and all major corporations in America, do business.

From Salon ● Aug. 30, 2026

Most of the phone calls were from the media.

From "The Smartest Kid in the Universe" by Chris Grabenstein

Media reports said an army helicopter was deployed in the cantonal capital, Aargau, as well as numerous police officers, rescue workers and medical teams.

From Barron's ● Aug. 30, 2026

“Restricting exports is indeed a lever China can pull anytime, but it still entails economic costs,” said Tom Reed, head of oil market analysis at Argus Media, a price reporting agency.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 29, 2026

Some Russian media outlets suggested that younger officials, including the management of Gazprom Media, wanted the concert to go ahead -- while older officials were more sceptical.

From Barron's ● Aug. 28, 2026

"My wife's auntie and uncle, and their granddaughter and her husband are missing, and my godson as well," he told PA Media.

From BBC ● Aug. 28, 2026

The day before departing for Nepal, in one of her first Web postings for NBC Interactive Media, she gushed, All my personal stuff is packed.

From "Into Thin Air" by Jon Krakauer

It is not until much later times that the h in the mutated forms of the tenues, or the use of the dot, was extended to the mediae.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 5 "Cat" to "Celt" by Various

As a rule the medial mutation of the tenues and mediae is not denoted in O. Welsh.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 5 "Cat" to "Celt" by Various

It agrees with Breton on the following points:—It has given up the nasal mutation of initials but provects the mediae.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 5 "Cat" to "Celt" by Various

Those called mediae by the writers on Greek grammar, viz., b, d, g, approach nearer in force to the corresponding tenues p, t, c, than they do in English.

From Elements of Gaelic Grammar by Alexander Stewart

A further peculiarity of Scottish Gaelic is that it substitutes lenes or voiceless mediae for the voiced stops, and even l, r, n sounds show a great tendency to give up the voice.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 5 "Cat" to "Celt" by Various

Related Words

• news
• publishing
• radio
• television