half-century

British

noun

a period of 50 years

during the past half-century
1. a score or grouping of 50
  
  a half-century of points
2. ( as modifier )
  
  as I near the half-century mark

"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

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Two new books shed light about the events of over a half-century ago and the even longer history of money stretching back to ancient times.

From Barron's • Jun. 5, 2026

England, helped by Emilio Gay's half-century on debut and more New Zealand dropped catches, steadily built what looked to be an imposing lead.

From BBC • Jun. 5, 2026

Over the past half-century, America’s economic pie has been growing slowly.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 31, 2026

Manilow notes proudly that the song, which was produced by Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds, recently made Billboard’s adult contemporary chart, extending his run on that tally beyond the half-century mark.

From Los Angeles Times • May 27, 2026

Here we are more than a quarter-century after the prophesied date and more than a half-century after the prediction, and we can check to see what happened.

From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker

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