1.
novella; medium-length work
A literary or cinematic work of medium length — longer than a short story or short film but shorter than a full-length novel or feature film.
中編小説を書いた。
I wrote a novella.
この映画は中編で、約六十分だ。
This is a medium-length film, about sixty minutes.
中編小説は短編と長編の間の長さだ。
A novella is a length between a short story and a novel.
2.
middle volume; middle part
The middle part of a multi-volume series, typically in a three-part (上中下) structure.
上編に続いて中編を読んだ。
I read the middle volume after the first.
三部作の中編が一番面白い。
The middle part of the trilogy is the most interesting.
中編は来月発売予定です。
The middle volume is scheduled for release next month.
Has two distinct uses: as a classification of work length (sense 1) and as a position in a multi-volume series (sense 2).
RELATED WORDS:
- 短編: short work (short story, short film)
- 長編: long work (novel, feature film)
- 上編: first volume / upper volume
- 下編: final volume / lower volume
USAGE:
For sense 1, there is no strict page or word count definition, but a 中編小説 (novella) is generally considered to be roughly 100-400 pages. For sense 2, 中編 is used interchangeably with 中巻 in some contexts.