halfway

Pronunciation

• IPA: /hɑːfˈweɪ/ (UK); /ˌhæfˈweɪ/ (US)^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old English healfweg,^[2] a compound of half and way,^[2][3][4] also written half-way.^[2][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

At or to half the distance: Old English, as an adverb.^[2][4]

Semantic evolution

Merriam-Webster dates the adjective, midway between two points, to 1694.^[3] A halfway house was originally a common name for inns midway between cities or stages;^[2] it is now a place for people readjusting to society, as after prison or treatment.^[5] To meet halfway is to compromise.^[6][4]

Timeline

• Old English – healfweg.^[2]
• 1694 – the adjective.^[3]

Modern meaning

Adverb

1. At or to half the distance; to the middle.
2. Partly; incompletely.

Adjective

1. Midway between two points or conditions.
2. Partial; going only part of the way: halfway measures.

Word family

• halfway house

Related words

• half
• way
• midway

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
3. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
4. ^ a b c d Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
5. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
6. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins