a medias is used to indicate that something is done partially or incompletely, suggesting that an action or situation is only partly fulfilled or resolved. It is commonly used in both spoken and written Spanish but tends to be more frequent in conversational contexts.
The work is halfway done, and we need to finish it.
La película se quedó a medias y no entendí el final.
The movie ended up in the middle, and I didn't understand the ending.
Su explicación quedó a medias, así que pido más detalles.
The phrase a medias appears in several idiomatic contexts, emphasizing incomplete actions or situations. Here are some examples:
We can't make a halfway commitment; we need to be clear.
Siempre deja los proyectos a medias; nunca los termina.
He always leaves projects in the middle; he never finishes them.
No quiero una solución a medias, necesito algo definitivo.
I don't want a partly solution; I need something definite.
Estaba indeciso y tomó una decisión a medias.
He was indecisive and made a halfway decision.
La reunión se quedó a medias sin llegar a una conclusión.
The phrase a medias originates from the Latin word "medius," meaning "middle." The preposition "a" means "at" or "in," making the phrase literally refer to being "at the middle" or "in the middle."