Midwest

American

[mid-west] / ˈmɪdˈwɛst /

noun

the north-central region of the United States, especially the states of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin.

adjective

Midwestern.

Midwest British

/ ˈmɪdˈwɛst /

noun

the N central part of the US; the region consisting of the states from Ohio westwards that border on the Great Lakes, often extended to include the upper Mississippi and Missouri valleys

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Usage

What does Midwest mean? The Midwest is the northern central area of the mainland United States.Generally, the boundaries of the Midwest are Canada to the north, the Rocky Mountains to the west, the southern borders of Missouri and Kansas to the south, and the Allegheny Mountains to the east. Sometimes the Midwest is thought of as extending to the eastern border of Illinois or Ohio.The Midwest is one of the United States’ four official regions as defined by the U.S. Census Bureau. Because the Census Bureau doesn’t divide states when defining regions, it sets Ohio as the Midwest’s eastern border. According to the Census, 12 states are located within the Midwest: Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, Missouri, Iowa, Minnesota, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, and North Dakota.Americans themselves often differ in terms of which states they consider to be in the Midwest. Sometimes, states on the fringes, such as Ohio or North Dakota, aren’t considered to be a part of the Midwest.Adjective forms of Midwest include Midwestern and Middle Western, but Midwest can also be used as an adjective, as in Midwest states. A person from the Midwest can be called a Midwesterner. Much less commonly, it’s called the Middle West.Example: I always love to travel to the central United States to see the beautiful scenery of the Midwest.

Other Word Forms

Midwesterner noun

Etymology

Origin of Midwest

First recorded in 1890–95; mid- + west

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.

Drivers from Serbia and parts of Eastern Europe form a significant part of the trucking industry in the Midwest, according to experts.

From The Wall Street Journal

Dutch Bros boosted its store count by 16% last year and plans to expand into the Midwest and Northeast, building market density.

From The Wall Street Journal

CEO Jonathan Neman said that the company was currently testing new wrap sandwiches, which it introduced on Tuesday in parts of New York, the Midwest and California.

From MarketWatch

However, one soft drinks firm in the Midwest is keeping old school tradition alive by continuing to sell its products in returnable glass bottles.

From BBC

In fact, 64% of data centers under construction are in so-called “frontier” markets, from the Midwest to the South, according to JLL.

From Barron's

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023