middling
Americanadjective
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medium, moderate, or average in size, quantity, or quality.
The returns on such a large investment may be only middling.
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mediocre; ordinary; commonplace; pedestrian.
The restaurant's entrées are no better than middling.
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Older Use. in fairly good health.
adverb
noun
-
middlings, any of various products or commodities of intermediate quality, grade, size, etc., as the coarser particles of ground wheat mingled with bran.
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Also called middling meat. Chiefly Midland and Southern U.S. Often middlings salt pork or smoked side meat.
adjective
adverb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of middling
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English (north) medlinge (present participle) “coming between, middle”; see also mid 1, -ling 2
Explanation
If something is middling, it isn't terrible and it isn't great — it's mediocre. You might describe your chances of beating your dad at tennis as middling. You'll frequently find this adjective in the phrase "fair to middling," or sometimes "good to middling." This American colloquialism has been used since the early 17th century to mean "slightly above average," and it originally referred to the quality of farm goods. Today you can use it to rate or grade anything, so you might say, "I thought this peach would be juicy and perfectly ripe, but it's fair to middling."
Vocabulary lists containing middling
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
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Nothing But the Truth
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Dust Tracks on a Road
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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.
The film opens Friday and has received middling reviews.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 25, 2026
In so much of modern cinema, “fun” has replaced “safe,” a new adjective with a better connotation meant to save middling films from themselves.
From Salon • May 27, 2026
Suzuki and the middling Angels, at least, would probably like Meckler to stay hot forever.
From Los Angeles Times • May 23, 2026
Should he stay on as a middling player or was it time to vacate his roster spot for more talented athletes?
From The Wall Street Journal • May 12, 2026
He was middling tall, and slow of speech.
From "Stardust" by Neil Gaiman
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.
