middle school

noun

Synonyms of middle schoolnext
: a school usually including grades five to eight or six to eight
middle schooler
-ˌskü-lər How to pronounce middle school (audio)
noun

Examples of middle school in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
West Virginia’s ban also applies at every level of competition, but only from middle school through college. — Maureen Groppe, USA Today, 1 July 2026 An announcement over the intercom of the middle school Anderson and her sister, Cassie, attended changed that. — Ava Dicecca, Sun Sentinel, 29 June 2026 Developers plan to have as many as 7,100 homes, two elementary schools, one middle school and one high school built over the course of the next 30 years. — Noah Daly, Idaho Statesman, 28 June 2026 Audiences, including the middle school social studies students, deserve better and more nuanced stories about this country and the values it was built upon. — Katie Walsh, Los Angeles Times, 2 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for middle school

Word History

First Known Use

1870, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of middle school was in 1870

Rhymes for middle school

See All Rhymes for middle school

Browse Nearby Words

Middlesbrough
middle school
Middle Scots
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Middle school.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/middle%20school. Accessed 8 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

Kids Definition

middle school

noun
: a school usually including grades 5 to 8 or 6 to 8

More from Merriam-Webster on middle school

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for middle school

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of gambol

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
hangman letters and game
Hangman Lightning Round Figure out which word fits in the blanks.
See All