middleman

See also: middle man

English

Alternative forms

• middle man
• middle-man

Etymology

From Middle English myddil man, equivalent to middle +‎ man.

Pronunciation

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• enPR: mĭdʹəlmănʹ
• IPA^(key): [ˈmɪdɫ̩ˌmæn]
• Rhymes: -ɪdəlmæn

Noun

middleman (plural middlemen)

1. An intermediary, agent between two (or more) parties.

   act as a middleman

   cut out the middleman

   financial middleman

2. An intermediate dealer between the manufacturer and the retailer or customer.

   The farmer sold his produce directly to stores without a middleman.

   Online platforms often eliminate the need for a middleman.

3. (Ireland, historical) One who rents land in large tracts, and lets it in small portions to the peasantry.

Synonyms

• intermediary
• go-between
• mediator
• (intermediate dealer) grocer

Coordinate terms

• middlewoman

Derived terms

• cut out the middleman
• middlemanism
• middlemanship

Translations

intermediary — see also intermediary,‎ mediator,‎ broker

• Hungarian: közvetítő (hu), közbenjáró (hu)
• Polish: pośrednik (pl) m pers
• Spanish: medianero (es) m

intermediate dealer between manufacturer and the retailer or customer — see also coyote,‎ intermediary

• Armenian: միջնորդ (hy) (miǰnord)
• Bulgarian: посредник (bg) m (posrednik)
• Catalan: mitjancer m
• Dutch: tussenhandelaar m
• Finnish: välittäjä (fi), välikäsi (fi)
• French: intermédiaire (fr) m or f
• Galician: intermediario (gl) m
• Greek: μεσάζων (el) m (mesázon)
• Hebrew: מְתַוֵּךְ m (metavékh)
• Hindi: बिचौलिया (hi) m (bicauliyā)
• Indonesian: tengkulak (id)
• Latin: interpres m or f
• Macedonian: препродавач m (preprodavač)
• Malay: orang tengah n, wasit m
• Norman: r'vendeux m
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: mellommann m

  Nynorsk: mellommann m

• Polish: pośrednik (pl) m pers
• Portuguese: intermediário (pt) m
• Russian: посре́дник (ru) m (posrédnik)
• Swahili: mlanguzi (sw)
• Swedish: mellanhand (sv) c
• Tagalog: tagapamagitan
• Turkish: aracı (tr), komisyoncu (tr), komisyoner

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• German: ^{(please verify)} Mittelsmann (de) m
• Italian: ^{(please verify)} intermediario (it) m, ^{(please verify)} mediatorio m
• Slovak: ^{(please verify)} sprostredkovateľ m
• Swedish: (1, 2) ^{(please verify)} mellanhand (sv) c

Verb

middleman (third-person singular simple present middlemans, present participle middlemanning, simple past and past participle middlemanned)

1. To act as a middleman or intermediary.