middle game

American

noun

Chess.

the stage between the opening and the end game, characterized by complicated moves by both opponents with pieces at full strength.

middle game British

noun

chess the central phase between the opening and the endgame

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of middle game

First recorded in 1890–95

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

middle game

Buehler started the middle game of a three-game series.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 17, 2024

The Orioles are in Boston for a three-game series, with the middle game scheduled for Wednesday night.

From Seattle Times ● Apr. 9, 2024

Play is balanced for much of the early middle game in this Tarrasch QGD before Black finds his pieces suddenly offside on the wrong wing as Kovalenko whips up a kingside attack: 29.

From Washington Times ● Sep. 26, 2023

I can’t say what noisy wonders the endgame — or even the middle game — might hold, only two episodes having been released for review.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 20, 2023

They rigorously studied his opening, middle game, and endings—and filtered classified analyses of their findings to the top Soviet players.

From "Endgame" by Frank Brady

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023