A continuous zoom mid-wave infrared optical system with an F-number of 4 and working wavelength range of 3.7~4.8 µm is designed.To achieve a large zoom ratio,a mechanical compensation method with switching roots has been employed.The narcissus phenomenon is analyzed through simulation,and the zoom curve is opti-mized.The overall structure of the optical system is compact,and the image remains clear with a smooth curve dur-ing the entire zoom process.