What does half mean?
“Half” names one of two equal parts of a whole and also functions as a quantifier, adjective, and adverb to indicate an amount, proportion, or degree equal to one part out of two. You might say “half of the audience” for a proportion of people, “a half-hour” for a period of thirty minutes, or “half-finished” for work that is partly done. In everyday uses such as “half the work,” the expression can indicate a substantial but unspecified share, while “half” may suggest incompleteness when paired with words like “finished,” “empty,” or “awake.” The related verb “half” means to divide something into halves, although “halve” and “halved” are more usual. In British school vocabulary, a “half” can also mean a school term. The word is highly flexible across speech and writing: it can name a fraction, modify a noun, follow a linking verb as a complement, or indicate incompleteness. Its simplicity makes it useful for describing proportion while often carrying an additional implication of only partial presence, completion, or attention.
One of two equal parts into which a whole is divided; also an amount equal to half of a unit.
"The audience ate half of the cake before the performance began."
The plural is halves. In British English, the word can also denote a school term.
Equal to one of two equal parts, or consisting of or involving only part of something.
"We had only a half-hour before the train departed."
Before a singular count noun, the usual form is “half a”; in compounds, it is commonly hyphenated, as in “half-hour” and “half-empty.”
To the extent of one of two equal parts, or partly rather than completely.
"The door was half open."
The adverb is especially common after linking verbs and in expressions describing incomplete actions or conditions.
To divide something into two equal parts.
"They halfed the large loaf so that everyone could have some."
This form is less common in modern usage than the verb “halve” and its forms “halved” and “halving.”
The plural is halves. In constructions such as “half of the students,” the word half generally remains singular.
"The cake was cut into eight equal halves."
In British schools, a “half” can mean an entire school term—a neat example of a word whose name is only partly literal.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does half come from?
The word comes from Old English half, where it already referred to one of two equal parts, and ultimately from Proto-Germanic *halbaz. The same Germanic root survives in related languages, including German halb, Danish and Swedish halv, and Icelandic hálfur. The exact prehistoric origin of the root is uncertain, but its long-established Germanic meaning has remained remarkably stable.
Related word forms
How half is actually used
As a quantifier, half is normally followed by “of” and a definite noun group, as in “half of the passengers,” or by an article or possessive and a singular noun, as in “half a mile” and “half my family.” In combinations such as “half-finished,” “half-empty,” and “half-awake,” it often suggests an incomplete or insufficient condition. The verb form is less common than “halve” and “halved.”
Easily confused with half
To halve something is to divide it into two equal parts, whereas a half is the resulting part or an amount equal to one of those parts.