Communication

Malayalam: language of Kerala and the Lakshadweep islands Malayalam Malayalam is a Dravidian language primarily spoken in Kerala and the Lakshadweep islands of India, noted for its distinct script, rich literary tradition, and agglutinative grammar…

Malayo-Polynesian languages A major branch of the Austronesian family spoken across Maritime Southeast Asia, Madagascar and the Pacific, including Malay, Tagalog, Javanese, Malagasy and the Polynesian languag…

Dhivehi (Maldivian language) Maldivian language Dhivehi, also called Divehi or Mahl, is an Indo‑Aryan language spoken in the Maldives and on Minicoy. It is the national language of the Maldives and is written in the Thaana scrip…

Maltese language: history, characteristics, and contemporary use Maltese language Maltese is a Semitic language spoken mainly in Malta, written in the Latin alphabet and shaped by Arabic, Sicilian, Italian and English influences. It is an official language of Ma…

Man-in-the-middle attack A Man-in-the-middle (MitM) attack is an active interception where an attacker relays, reads, or alters communications between parties that believe they are talking directly.

Manchester code (biphase line encoding) Manchester code A self-clocking binary line code that encodes data as signal transitions; widely used for clock recovery and DC balance in systems such as Ethernet and RFID.

Mandarin Chinese (Standard Chinese, Putonghua) Mandarin Chinese Overview of Mandarin Chinese: its status as the standard form of Chinese, major features, history of standardization, regional varieties, uses, and notable distinctions.

Manglish (Malaysian colloquial English) Manglish Manglish: informal Malaysian English blending English with Malay, Chinese dialects and other languages. A nonstandard, evolving variety used in casual speech, media and identity ex…

Manx language (Manx Gaelic) Manx language Manx (Gaelg/Gailck) is a Goidelic Celtic language of the Isle of Man. Once declined to near extinction, it has been revived through education, media and official protection and rem…

Man'yōgana: the early phonetic use of Chinese characters in Japanese Manyogana Man'yōgana is an early Japanese writing practice that used Chinese characters for their sounds to represent Japanese speech; it was a direct ancestor of hiragana and katakana and a…

Mazandarani (Tabari): overview of the Northwestern Iranian language Mazandarani language Mazandarani (Tabari) is a Northwestern Iranian language spoken along Iran's southern Caspian coast, with several million speakers, distinct dialects, and a long local oral traditio…

MC (abbreviation and initialism) MC Concise overview of uses of MC, M.C., Mc, mC and mc: host or emcee, musical performer, chemical symbol (moscovium), surname prefix, country code (Monaco), Monte Carlo method, Roman…

McCune–Reischauer romanization McCune–Reischauer A widely used system for romanizing Korean, developed in the 20th century; notable for diacritics and apostrophes. Once South Korea's official system, a North Korean variant remain…

Meaning: concepts of semantics, pragmatics and signification Meaning An accessible overview of 'meaning' across language, signs and behavior — how information is conveyed, types of meaning, historical theories, and distinctions between literal, impl…

Meitei language (Manipuri): overview, script, history and use Meitei language Meitei (Manipuri) is the primary language of Manipur, a Tibeto-Burman tongue with its own script, rich literary tradition, and official status in India and local administration.

Message passing (computer science) Message passing Exchange of data between independent computation entities; forms, mechanisms, uses, and design trade-offs in concurrent and distributed systems.

Messenger (communication and delivery) Messenger A messenger conveys information or items between parties. Covers human couriers, postal and courier systems, electronic messaging, historical development, features, legal and secur…

Meteor burst communication (meteor scatter) Meteor burst communication A radio propagation method that uses short-lived ionized meteor trails to reflect signals, enabling intermittent over‑the‑horizon links for military, remote and amateur communicati…

Microsoft Outlook — email client and personal information manager Microsoft Outlook Microsoft Outlook is Microsoft's email client and personal information manager, combining email, calendar, contacts and tasks across desktop, web and mobile and commonly used with…

Míkmaq language An Eastern Algonquian language of the Míkmaq people, spoken in Atlantic Canada and parts of the northeastern United States; known for polysynthetic grammar, several orthographies,…

Min Nan (Hokkien, Taiwanese): Southern Min languages of Fujian and the diaspora Min Nan Min Nan (also Hokkien or Taiwanese) is the Southern Min branch of Sinitic languages spoken in southern Fujian, Taiwan and among Chinese communities across Southeast Asia.

Misinformation during the COVID-19 pandemic Misinformation related to the COVID-19 pandemic How false and misleading claims spread during the COVID-19 pandemic: common types, origins, impacts, and the public-health and information responses to limit harm.

Modem (modulator–demodulator) — overview, types, history and uses Modem A modem converts digital signals to analog and back to enable data transmission over telephone, cable and other communication media; this article explains operation, forms, history…

Modern language A modern language is a living language used in contemporary communication, education, media and government; contrasted with extinct or historical languages and shaped by social cha…

Modulation: methods, types, and applications Modulation Modulation is the process of varying a carrier signal to convey information. This article summarizes major analog and digital methods, key parameters, historical notes, receiver co…

Moldovan language: history, characteristics, and contemporary status Moldovan language Survey of the Moldovan language: its close relation to Romanian, script history, legal status, regional varieties, use in Moldova and Transnistria, and sociolinguistic issues.

Mongolian language Mongolian is the principal member of the Mongolic family, spoken chiefly in Mongolia and Inner Mongolia. It is agglutinative with vowel harmony and SOV order; written in Cyrillic (…

Mongolian script: traditional vertical writing for Mongolic languages Mongolian script The traditional Mongolian script is a vertical, cursive writing system derived from Old Uyghur. It remains the primary script in Inner Mongolia and is undergoing revival and digita…

Monitor Overview of 'monitor': etymology, major types (visual displays, medical, environmental, computing, naval, biological), history, functions, design considerations and ethical issues.

Monitoring Systematic observation and measurement of a system’s state over time to detect change, inform decisions, trigger actions and ensure safety, performance or compliance.

Morse code: history, structure, and modern uses Morse code Morse code is a method of encoding letters, numbers and punctuation into sequences of short and long signals. It shaped early telegraphy and remains in limited use in radio, mariti…

Moving the Goalposts: Meaning, Use, and How to Respond Moving the goalposts Explanation of the idiom 'moving the goalposts': its meaning, typical contexts, relation to argument fallacies, examples, consequences, and practical ways to address it.

Multi-user (computing): concept, design, history and uses Multi-user Multi-user describes systems, programs or games that allow more than one person to use the same computer resources concurrently; includes architecture, history, examples and contra…

Multilingualism: overview, characteristics, history, and social importance Multilingualism Multilingualism is the use or knowledge of more than one language by an individual or community. This article explains forms, acquisition, social roles, benefits, challenges and re…

Multiplexing: methods for combining multiple signals on one channel Multiplexing Multiplexing combines several information signals into a single transmission medium. This article explains common methods, historical development, typical applications, and key tec…

Mute (speech loss, silence, and sound control) Mute Mute describes absence or suppression of sound or speech: medical forms of mutism, devices and techniques that quiet musical instruments, and controls that silence audio or users i…

Muteness: causes, types, assessment and communication Muteness Muteness refers to an inability to speak. This article outlines definitions, causes (congenital, acquired, psychogenic), assessment, treatment options, communication alternatives,…

Mutual intelligibility: how speech varieties relate and when they are understood Mutual intelligibility Mutual intelligibility describes when speakers of different speech varieties understand each other. It covers causes, measurements, examples (e.g., English, Hindi–Urdu, Chinese, Po…

Nasal consonant A nasal consonant is produced by lowering the velum so air escapes through the nose while the oral cavity is blocked; common cross-linguistic sounds include [m], [n], and [ŋ].

National language A national language is one associated with a country's identity and public life; it can play symbolic, legal, educational, and administrative roles distinct from official or region…

NATO phonetic alphabet (international radiotelephony spelling alphabet) NATO phonetic alphabet Standardized word list used to spell letters clearly in speech—widely used in aviation, military, maritime and emergency communications to avoid misunderstanding.

Near Field Communication (NFC): short-range wireless data and applications Near field communication Near field communication (NFC) is a short-range wireless technology for simple data exchange, contactless payments, ticketing, access control and device pairing using radio frequen…

Needham–Schroeder protocol Needham-Schroeder protocol Two classical authentication protocols (symmetric-key and public-key) by Needham and Schroeder for establishing identity and session keys over insecure networks, notable for influe…

Negotiation Negotiation is a process of structured discussion to reach mutually acceptable agreements. It encompasses stages, strategies, and types used in diplomacy, business, law, and everyd…

Nepali language — overview, history, writing, and distribution Nepali language An encyclopedic overview of the Nepali language: origins, writing system, geographic distribution, linguistic features, official status and cultural importance across South Asia.

Neurotransmitter Chemical messengers released by neurons to communicate across synapses; include amino-acid transmitters, monoamines and peptides; central to brain function, plasticity and many the…

New Zealand English Variety of English spoken in New Zealand, notable for distinctive vowel pronunciation, Māori loanwords, and close ties to British and Australian English.

Newbie: meaning, variants, history, and social use Newbie Newbie denotes a newcomer or novice, especially online or in gaming. Explains variants (newb, noob, n00b), origins, community roles, common etiquette, and differences in tone and u…