媒 méi go-between
go-between; matchmaker; medium
How to remember 媒: 女 woman + 某 some = go-between. The chatty woman at the tea house knows some nice young man for every single girl, the town's busiest go-between.
Component breakdown
媒 = 女 woman + 某 some
- 女 woman
- 某 some
The chatty woman at the tea house knows some nice young man for every single girl, the town's busiest go-between.
How it is used
- 媒体 (méitǐ) - media - is by far the most common word, referring to news outlets, press, and broadcast media.
- 多媒体 (duōméitǐ) - multimedia - and 新媒体 (xīnméitǐ) - new/digital media - are common tech and marketing terms.
- 媒介 (méijiè) - medium/intermediary - is more abstract and academic than 媒体.
- The original sense of "go-between/matchmaker" survives in 做媒 (zuò méi) - to act as a matchmaker in traditional arranged introductions.