the middle area of the human torso (usually in front)
<noun.body> young American women believe that a bare midriff is fashionable
(anatomy) a muscular partition separating the abdominal and thoracic cavities; functions in respiration
<noun.body>
Midriff \Mid"riff\ (m[i^]d"r[i^]f), n. [AS. midhrif; midd mid, middle + hrif bowels, womb; akin to OFries. midref midriff, rif, ref, belly, OHG. href body, and to L. corpus body. See {Corpse}.] (Anat.) 1. See {Diaphragm}, n., 2.
2. The middle part of the front of the body, from the waist to the chest. [PJC]
Smote him into the midriff with a stone. --Milton.
3. That part of a garment, especially a dress or bodice, that covers the midriff[2]. [PJC]
Some presented bolero jackets over a nude midriff, others cut their tops so short that they did not cover the essential, and others still dipped below the waist to bare the navel, while they covered the bosom in bandeau bras.
Even better, taking advantage of HD's unusually wide format, Ms. Zambello emphasized the epic aspect of the piece, keeping close-ups to midriff, and staying out of Natasha's dentalwork.
High up above us, Cassandra (bare midriff) foretells disaster; Astyanax is caught and led to destruction; his mother Andromache hurls herself to her death.
Streep's head is twisted backwards, smashed between her shoulders and knocked off its perch altogether; Hawn's midriff is ventilated by a shotgun blast.