A midterm is an exam given halfway through a school term or semester. While final exams test everything you've learned all year, a midterm focuses on the material covered in the first half of the course. Teachers use midterms to check whether students are keeping up with the work and understanding key concepts before moving forward.

The word also appears in politics. Midterm elections happen halfway through a president's four-year term, when voters elect members of Congress and other officials. These elections can serve as a kind of report card on how the president is doing.

In both cases, “midterm” marks a checkpoint: a moment to assess progress before reaching the end. A student might study hard for midterms, knowing they still have half the year ahead to improve their understanding.