half
half
Pronunciation
The IPA phonetic spelling for "half" is /hɑːf/.
half: /hɑːf/
Word Form Variations
Noun: half (singular), halves (plural)
Adjective: half
Adverb: half
Verb: halve (base form), halves (third person singular present), halved (past tense, past participle), halving (present participle)
Definitions, Synonyms and Antonyms
Noun
Half
One of two equal parts into which something is divided.
Synonyms: moiety, portion, division, fraction, segment
Antonyms: whole, entirety, total, full
(Sports) One of two equal periods of play in certain games, such as football or basketball.
Synonyms: period, inning, portion, spell
Antonyms: full game, whole match
(Informal) A half-pint of beer. (British English)
Synonyms: short beer, small beer
Antonyms: pint, full pint
Adjective
Half
Consisting of one of two equal parts.
Synonyms: partial, divided, fractional, incomplete
Antonyms: whole, full, complete, entire
(Of a specified amount or quantity) being half of the usual or expected amount.
Synonyms: partial, reduced, insufficient
Antonyms: full, double, extra
Adverb
Half
To the extent of fifty percent; partly.
Synonyms: partly, partially, incompletely, midway
Antonyms: wholly, entirely, fully, completely
Verb
Halve
To divide into two equal parts.
Synonyms: bisect, divide, split, cut in half, cleave
Antonyms: double, multiply, combine
To reduce by half.
Synonyms: reduce, lessen, cut, diminish
Antonyms: double, increase, expand
Examples of Use
Books
Cookbooks: Recipes frequently specify ingredients by the "half." "Add one and a half cups of sugar" (America's Test Kitchen, October 2022).
Fiction: Characters might walk a "half-mile," meet someone halfway, or describe something as half-finished. "The old house stood half-hidden by the overgrown trees."
Academic Texts (Mathematics/Science): These discuss concepts involving halves or fractions. "Divide the number in half."
Newspapers
News Articles: Journalists report on quantities, periods, or partial events. A headline might read, "Economy Grows by One and a Half Percent" (The Wall Street Journal, July 2025). Articles often mention events happening in the "second half of the year."
Sports Sections: Reports frequently cover the "first half" or "second half" of a game, or a team leading by "a half-point." "The team made a strong comeback in the second half."
Weather Reports: Forecasts might mention a "half chance of rain."
Online Publications
E-commerce Sites: Product listings might show "half-price sales" or describe items as "comes in two halves." "Get half off your first order!"
Fitness Blogs: Articles often suggest drinking "half your body weight in ounces of water" or doing "a half marathon training plan."
Social Media: Users might post about their day being "half over," or share photos of things split in half. "My weekend is already half gone!"
News Sites: Online news might publish data showing "nearly half of the population" holding a certain opinion.
Various Entertainment Mediums and Platforms
Movies/TV Shows: Dialogue often includes "half" for partial amounts or time. A character might say, "I'll meet you halfway," or "It's half past three." A show might go on "hiatus for half a season."
Music: Song lyrics frequently use "half" to express incompleteness, a part of a whole, or a journey. "I'm only half of what I want to be."
Video Games: Players might collect "half-completed quests," or a progress bar might show that a task is "half done." Some games involve splitting resources in half.
Podcasts: Hosts discussing a topic might split it into "two halves" or explore "the other half of the story."
General Public Discourse
Conversations: In daily speech, people commonly say, "Can I have half of your sandwich?" or "It's half empty, half full." "I'll be there in a half hour."
Workplace: Colleagues discuss projects that are "half finished" or meeting someone "halfway on a compromise." "We need to analyze the second half of the data."
Education: Teachers might ask students to solve problems by dividing numbers in half.
Cooking: People follow recipes that call for "half a cup" of an ingredient.
Figurative Use: "Half-baked idea" (not fully thought out) or "meet someone halfway" (compromise) are common. "That plan sounds a bit half-baked."
10 Quotes Using Half
"A house divided against itself cannot stand; it cannot stand half slave and half free." (Abraham Lincoln)
"The glass is either half empty or half full; perspective truly makes all the difference."
"Only half of what I say is true." (Salvador Dalí)
"The journey of self-discovery is, by its very nature, only ever half complete."
"True understanding always requires hearing more than just half the story from any side."
"A half-hearted effort, inevitably, will yield only half-hearted results and satisfaction."
"She lived her life with passionate intensity, never doing anything by half."
"He realized that genuine compromise means meeting someone exactly halfway, not all the way."
"Sometimes, the biggest obstacle is believing you're only half capable of achieving greatness."
"The wisdom of age often comes from learning when to give half and when to take half with equanimity."
Etymology
The word "half" comes from the Old English word "healf," which meant "side," "part," or specifically "one of two equal parts." It has roots in ancient Germanic languages, all related to the idea of a portion or a side.
The first known use of "half" in English, with the meaning of "one of two equal parts into which something is divided," dates back to before the 9th century. It appeared in texts referring directly to a division into two equal portions, and this core meaning has remained consistent throughout its history.
Phrases + Idioms Containing Half
Go halfsies: To split something (like a cost or food) equally into two parts. "Let's go halfsies on the pizza."
Half-baked: Not fully thought out or developed; incomplete. "That's a half-baked idea that won't work."
Half-hearted: Lacking enthusiasm or effort. "He made a half-hearted attempt to clean his room."
Half-measure: An inadequate or incomplete action or solution. "These budget cuts are just half-measures; they won't solve the problem."
Half a mind to: To be strongly tempted to do something, but typically not doing it. "I have half a mind to just quit this job."
Half-truth: A statement that is only partly true, often intended to deceive. "The politician only told half-truths during his speech."
The better half: One's spouse or partner. "He always consults his better half before making big decisions."
Meet halfway: To compromise with someone. "We need to meet halfway on this issue to reach an agreement."
Half-cocked: Done without proper preparation or thought. "He went off half-cocked and made a huge mistake."
Not the half of it: Only a small part of the full story or extent of something. "You haven't heard the half of it yet."
Vocabulary-Based Stories from SEA
Source Information
Definition of half from The Academic Glossary at Self Exploration Academy, a Urikville Press Publication. © All rights reserved.
