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half

UK/ˈhɑːf/ US/ˈhaːf/ very common slang uk
noun (2) adjective (3) adverb (1)

noun

1.

one of two equal parts of a divisible whole

  • “half a loaf”
  • “half an hour”
  • “a century and one half”
Synonyms
2.

in various games or performances: either of two periods of play separated by an interval

adjective

1.

consisting of one of two equivalent parts in value or quantity

  • “a half chicken”
  • “lasted a half hour”
Similar
2.

partial

  • “gave me a half smile”
  • “he did only a half job”
Similar
3.

(of siblings) related through one parent only

  • “a half brother”
  • “half sister”
Antonyms

adverb

1.

partially or to the extent of a half

  • “he was half hidden by the bushes”

Origin

From Middle English half, halfe from Old English healf (“half”); as a noun, 'half', 'side', 'part', from Proto-West Germanic *halb, from Proto-Germanic *halbaz. Cognates Cognate with Old Saxon, Old Frisian, and Old Dutch half, West Frisian heal, Dutch half, German halb, Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk, and Swedish halv, Icelandic hálfur and Gothic 𐌷𐌰𐌻𐌱𐍃 (halbs). Compare halve, behalf.

Phrases

  • not half

Related words

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WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.