Medias

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The plural form of a medium, which refers to various means of communication or artistic expression
2. Different types of materials or methods used to convey information or art
3. Various channels or formats employed to disseminate messages or culture

Etymology: "Medias" is the plural of "media," and the plural itself is the more surprising part of the story. The Latin word "media" is the neuter plural of "medius," meaning "middle," so the original sense was something like "middle things" or "intermediate things," with no hint of newspapers or broadcasting. English took the Latin form as a learned borrowing, and for centuries it was treated as a Latin plural, which is why "media" with a singular "medium" was the standard pattern. The modern sense comes from a clipping. "Media" was shortened from "multimedia," itself built from "multi-" and "media" in the sense of "forms of communication." That sense of the plural grew up in the twentieth century, and it is often reinterpreted as a singular or mass noun, so speakers now say "the media is" as easily as "the media are." The form "medias" is a further extension, using an English plural ending on a word that was already a plural, which is why many style guides still regard it as nonstandard.

Synonyms: mediums, channels