half-hour

[haf-ouuhr, -ou-er, hahf-]

noun

1. a period of 30 minutes.

2. the midpoint between the hours.

   The clock struck on the half-hour.

adjective

1. of, relating to, or consisting of a half-hour.

   half-hour programs.

half-hour

noun

1. 1. a period of 30 minutes

   2. ( as modifier )

      a half-hour stint on the treadmill

2. 1. the point of time 30 minutes after the beginning of an hour

   2. ( as modifier )

      a half-hour chime

Other Word Forms

• half-hourly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of half-hour¹

late Middle English word dating back to 1375–1425

Example Sentences

The S&P 500 entered the final half-hour of trading on pace for its biggest comeback since April.

Read more on Barron's

Its perfect averageness makes it easy to dismiss, but it’s a painless, pleasant half-hour, with a smattering of genuine laughs.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Less than a half-hour from Philadelphia, the Edelman, which opened March 29, takes full advantage of its site, once a sea teeming with marine creatures and, more recently, a glauconite quarry.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

It advertises a net drop of 5,242 feet and average finish times a half-hour shorter than the New York Marathon.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

"The difference from the first half-hour to the next 60 minutes was too far apart really," the head coach said.

Read more on BBC