happy medium

noun

1. a course of action or condition that is between two extremes:

   Our climate is a happy medium between hot and cold.

2. a satisfactory compromise between two things that are related in such a way that one increases as the other decreases:

   We need to find a happy medium between conserving land and developing property.

happy medium

noun

1. a course or state that avoids extremes

Word History and Origins

Origin of happy medium¹

First recorded in 1615–25

Idioms and Phrases

The midway point between two extremes. For example, We need to find a happy medium between overdoing the holiday season and ignoring it entirely . This expression, first recorded in 1778, was once known as the golden mean and is based on ancient mathematical principles.

Example Sentences

“There is a happy medium,” he said.

From Los Angeles Times

So let me challenge all y’all Dodgers fans to a happy medium: Make Los Angeles more like your team.

From Los Angeles Times

This was on a bright May morning and Coleman, a star of the FX limited series “Clipped,” premiering Tuesday on Hulu, was at Happy Medium, an art cafe around the corner from her temporary apartment in Greenpoint, Brooklyn.

From New York Times

The track builds from moody to explosive, striking a happy medium between Thursday’s strident early work and its final full-length, “No Devolución,” which presaged a pivot of former hardcore artists to shoegaze and dream-pop.

From New York Times

TV: I think the key to a harmonious Thanksgiving party is to find a happy medium, where Team White Meat and Team Dark Meat can coexist.

From Seattle Times