Meso-
/ˈmɛsoʊ/noun
A combining form meaning “middle,” “intermediate,” or “between.”
Did you know?In Mesopotamia, meso- means “between,” describing the land literally located between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*medhyo-
“Middle or in the midst of something”
Ancient Greek
Greek
μέσος (mesos)
“Middle, situated between, or intermediate”
Classical Greek
Greek
μέσον (meson)
“The middle or central point”
Ancient Greek compound
Greek
Μεσοποταμία (Mesopotamia)
“The land between the rivers”
19th Century
Scientific English
meso-
“A combining form used in scientific terms for something middle, intermediate, or between”
Modern English
English
meso-
“A productive prefix in terms such as mesosphere, mesoderm, and mesolithic”