intermediate (adj.)

(1) A term used in the PHONETIC classification of VOWEL QUALITIES, to refer to a vowel which falls between two adjacent CARDINAL vowels. The vowel which occurs in the centre of the cardinal vowel area is also sometimes referred to as an intermediate vowel.

(2) In X-BAR theory, a ‘small’ phrase – larger than the lexical category (zero-level projection) and smaller than the maximal projection (usually X-double-bar, or XP) – is called an intermediate projection (X-single-bar, or X′).