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View synonyms for half

half

[ haf ]

noun

, plural halves [havz].
  1. one of two equal or approximately equal parts of a divisible whole, as an object, or unit of measure or time; a part of a whole equal or almost equal to the remainder.
  2. a quantity or amount equal to such a part (½).
  3. Sports. either of two equal periods of play, usually with an intermission or rest period separating them. Compare quarter ( def 10 ).
  4. one of two; a part of a pair.
  5. Informal.
    1. the sum of 50 cents:

      Four dimes and two nickels make a half.

  6. Baseball. either of the two units of play into which an inning is divided, the visiting team batting in the first unit and the home team batting in the second.
  7. Football. a halfback.
  8. British Informal.
    1. a half-crown coin.
    2. the sum of a half crown; two shillings, sixpence.
    3. a half pint:

      He ordered a half of ale.



adjective

  1. being one of two equal or approximately equal parts of a divisible whole:

    a half quart.

  2. being half or about half of anything in degree, amount, length, etc.:

    at half speed; half sleeve.

  3. partial or incomplete:

    half measures.

adverb

  1. in or to the extent or measure of half.
  2. in part; partly; incompletely:

    half understood.

    Synonyms: partially, somewhat, barely

  3. to some extent; almost:

    half recovered.

half

1

/ hɑːf /

noun

    1. either of two equal or corresponding parts that together comprise a whole
    2. a quantity equalling such a part

      half a dozen

  1. half a pint, esp of beer
  2. a small drink of spirits, esp whisky
  3. sport the half of the pitch regarded as belonging to one team
  4. golf an equal score on a hole or round with an opponent
  5. (in various games) either of two periods of play separated by an interval (the first half and second half )
  6. a half-price ticket on a bus, train, etc
  7. short for half-hour
  8. short for halfpenny
  9. sport short for halfback
  10. obsolete.
    a half-year period
  11. better half humorous.
    a person's wife or husband
  12. by half
    by an excessive amount or to an excessive degree

    he's too arrogant by half

  13. by halves
    used with a negative without being thorough or exhaustive

    we don't do things by halves

  14. go halves
    often foll byon, in, etc
    1. to share the expenses (of something with one other person)
    2. to share the whole amount (of something with another person)

      to go halves on an orange

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012


determiner

    1. being a half or approximately a half

      half the kingdom

    2. ( as pronoun; functioning as sing or plural )

      half of them came

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

adjective

  1. not perfect or complete; partial

    he only did a half job on it

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

adverb

  1. to the amount or extent of a half
  2. to a great amount or extent
  3. partially; to an extent
  4. half two informal.
    30 minutes after two o'clock
  5. have half a mind to
    to have the intention of
  6. not half informal.
    1. not in any way

      he's not half clever enough

    2. really; very; indeed

      he isn't half stupid

    3. certainly; yes, indeed
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

half-

2

prefix

  1. one of two equal parts

    half-moon

  2. related by one parent only

    half-sister

  3. not completely; partly

    half-hardy

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Grammar Note

See well 1.
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Word History and Origins

Origin of half1

before 900; Middle English; Old English h ( e ) alf; cognate with German Halb, Old Norse halfr, Gothic halbs
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Word History and Origins

Origin of half1

Old English healf; related to Old Norse halfr, Old High German halb, Dutch half
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Idioms and Phrases

Idioms
  1. by half, by very much; by far:

    She was too talented by half for her routine role.

  2. half again as much / many, as much as 50 percent more:

    This mug holds half again as much coffee as the smaller one.

  3. half in two, Southern U.S. (chiefly Gulf States). in or into two parts; in half:

    Cut the cake half in two.

  4. in half, divided into halves:

    The vase broke in half.

  5. not half,
    1. not at all; not really:

      His first attempts at painting are not half bad.

  6. not the half of, a significant yet relatively minor part of something that remains to be described in full: Also not half of, not half.

    He accused them of being responsible for the error, and that's not the half of the story.

More idioms and phrases containing half

  • at half-mast
  • better half
  • by half
  • glass is half full
  • go halfway
  • go off (half-cocked)
  • in half
  • not bad (half bad)
  • six of one, half dozen of the other
  • time and a half
  • with half an eye
  • halfway
  • halves
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Example Sentences

The Highlands and Islands representative said she could not imagine "being a good MSP" while spending "half" her time in London.

From BBC

Morgan, 24, was named on the bench for the defeat against Fiji but made an impression when he came on in the second half.

From BBC

More than half of registered voters say they don’t have a preference among the candidates.

More than half of these will be paid for by employers, with the National Insurance increase set to generate £25bn a year.

From BBC

But I did not speak to anybody for like a month and a half after.

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

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Haley, Alexhalf-a-crown