In the middle of means in the centre of a place (in the middle of the room) or partway through a period of time (in the middle of the night, in the middle of June). The second main meaning is being busy with something right now: I'm in the middle of dinner. And Sorry, I'm in the middle of something is a polite way of saying “now isn't a good time” without explaining what you're doing.
Want to use in the middle of in conversation?
Write a sentence — we'll show the mistakes right away and suggest how to say it more naturally.
The check is taking longer than usual. Your feedback will appear here automatically.
in the middle of + place/time; be in the middle of + noun/-ing; be in the middle of something
- There's a small fountain in the middle of the square where tourists meet.
- The fire alarm went off in the middle of our exam.
- Can I call you back? I'm in the middle of cooking dinner.
What changed
First versionMy phone rang at the middle of the night.
RevisionMy phone rang in the middle of the night.
The preposition at can creep in from at night. But middle needs in: in the middle of the night, in the middle of the meeting. People don't say at the middle of the night.
For places, in the middle of and in the centre of are often interchangeable, but centre is more precise and more formal: the city centre, in the centre of the circle. For time and activities, only middle works: in the middle of the film, not in the centre of the film.
Your turn
The phone rang ___ the film, right at the best scene.
Show the answer
in the middle of — This is about a moment during the film, and only middle works for time. In the centre of is for a point in space: in the centre of a city or a circle.
Describe a time when you were interrupted. Say what you were doing and what distracted you.
I was in the middle of a job interview on Zoom when my neighbour started drilling the wall.
Learn to use new words without mistakes
Write phrases with the words you are learning. LetsWords shows mistakes in usage and grammar, suggests corrections and explains them, and review helps the words stick.