Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

midlife

/ˈmɪdlaɪf/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.81 in modern English

Syllables: midlife
IPA: /ˈmɪdlaɪf/

13

Scrabble Score

7

Letters

2

Syllables

6

Unique Chars

Meaning

adj

Occurring in the middle point of one's life, usually considered about 45.

noun

The middle period of one's life.

Example Sentences

"Twins from all the patterns of twinship experienced this emotional disaster as young adults or in their midlives."
"Now we were writing, talking, sharing bits of our lives again, glad that both of us were able to talk about our midlives (which we realized could very well have been our late lives)."

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *me Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁-? Proto-Indo-European *-dʰe Proto-Indo-European *médʰi Proto-Indo-European *-os Proto-Indo-European *médʰyos Proto-Germanic *midjaz Proto-West Germanic *midi Old English midd Middle English mid English mid English mid- Proto-Indo-European *leyp- Proto-Germanic *lībanąder. Proto-Germanic *lībą Proto-West Germanic *līb Old English līf Middle English lyf English life English midlife From mid- + life.

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ˈmɪdlaɪf/

Inflected Forms

mid-life (alternative) midlives (plural)

Derived Forms

midlifer

Phrases

midlife crisis mid-life crisis

Questions

How do you pronounce midlife?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈmɪdlaɪf/.
What does midlife mean?: Occurring in the middle point of one's life, usually considered about 45.
Where does midlife come from?: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *me Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁-? Proto-Indo-European *-dʰe Proto-Indo-European *médʰi Proto-Indo-European *-os Proto-Indo-European *médʰyos Proto-Germanic *midjaz Proto-West Germanic *midi Old English midd Middle English mid English mid English mid- Proto-Indo-European *leyp- Proto-Germanic *lībanąder. Proto-Germanic *lībą Proto-West Germanic *līb Old English līf Middle English lyf English life English midlife From mid- + life.

How to pronounce midlife

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “midlife”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈmɪdlaɪf/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
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Repeat and practice — Say “midlife” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.