half note

American  

noun

Music.

1. a note equivalent in time value to one half of a whole note; minim.

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half-note British  

noun

1. Also called: minim.  a note having the time value of half a semibreve

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Etymology

Origin of half note

First recorded in 1590–1600

Example Sentences

Curly’s voice cracked which he’d try to cover up by sliding up or down a half note.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 23, 2022

The episode ends ludicrously: as Brownshirts riot around Innitzer's palace, Soprano Wilma Lipp and 200 members of the Wiener Jeunesse Choir huddle primly in the plaza, singing Mozart's Alleluia without skipping a half note.

From Time Magazine Archive

The tied quarters here would sound exactly like a half note crossing the bar line.

From "Understanding Basic Music Theory" by Catherine Schmidt-Jones and Russel Jones

For example, the first dot after a half note adds a quarter note length; the second dot would add an eighth note length.

From "Understanding Basic Music Theory" by Catherine Schmidt-Jones and Russel Jones

So a dotted half note, for example, would last as long as a half note plus a quarter note, or three quarters of a whole note.

From "Understanding Basic Music Theory" by Catherine Schmidt-Jones and Russel Jones