amidst

English

Alternative forms

• amidest (obsolete)
• amiddst (obsolete, rare)
• amiddest (obsolete)
• amydst (obsolete)
• amyddst (obsolete, rare)
• amyddest (obsolete, rare)

Etymology

From amids +‎ -t (excrescent), from amid +‎ -s (genitive). By surface analysis, amid +‎ -st (excrescent). Root amid from Middle English amidde, amiddes, on midden, from Old English on middan (“in the middle”), from midd (“central”) (English mid).

Pronunciation

• (General American, Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /aˈmɪdst/, /əˈmɪtst/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɪdst

Preposition

amidst

1. In the midst or middle of; surrounded or encompassed by; among.

   Synonyms: amid, among, amongst

   • 1748, [David Hume], chapter 4, in Philosophical Essays Concerning Human Understanding, London: […] A[ndrew] Millar, […], →OCLC:

     Be a philosopher ; but amidst all your philosophy, be still a man.

   • 1912 October, Edgar Rice Burroughs, “Tarzan of the Apes”, in The All-Story, New York, N.Y.: Frank A. Munsey Co., →OCLC; republished as chapter 5, in Tarzan of the Apes, New York, N.Y.: A. L. Burt Company, 1914 June, →OCLC:

     Not so, however, with Tarzan, the man-child. His life amidst the dangers of the jungle had taught him to meet emergencies with self-confidence, and his higher intelligence resulted in a quickness of mental action far beyond the powers of the apes.

Usage notes

As with other words with excrescent suffix -st, amidst is generally considered synonymous with simpler amid, and amid is preferred by style guides on both sides of the Atlantic.

Further, amidst/amid are similar in meaning to – but distinct from – amongst/among. Amid(st) denotes that something is "in the midst of", "surrounded by" other things, and is used when the idea of separate things is not prominent. Among(st) denotes that something is mingling with other separable things ("blessed art thou among women").

Some speakers feel it is an obsolete form of amid. Amidst is more common in British English than American English, though it is used to some degree in both.

Translations

in the midst or middle of; surrounded or encompassed by; among

• Arabic: بَيْن (ar) (bayn)

  Egyptian Arabic: بين (ben)

• Armenian: մեջ (hy) (meǰ)
• French: au milieu de (fr), entre (fr), parmi (fr)
• German: inmitten (de)
• Irish: i lár, i measc
• Italian: in mezzo
• Polish: pośród (pl)
• Portuguese: entre (pt), no meio de, em meio a
• Slovene: srédi
• Spanish: en medio
• Swedish: mitt i, under (sv)

Anagrams

• admits