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Halve: Definition, Usage & Common Mistakes (2 meaning)
Meaning 1：reduce by half (halve)
halve
/hɑːv/
v.
To reduce something by 50%, making it half of what it was before.
reduce by half
➕
/rɪˈdjuːs baɪ hɑːf/
v.
To make something exactly 50% smaller in amount, size, or degree than it was previously.
📘 Details & Usage
📖 Root Explanation
Derived from Old English 'halfian' (to halve), from 'half' (half).
💡 Mnemonic
Think of 'half'. To **halve** something is to make it into a **half**.
📖 Example
To reach his fitness goal, he decided to halve his daily sugar intake.
To reach his fitness goal, he decided to halve his daily sugar intake.
🔗 Collocations
halve the amount – reduce the quantity by fifty percent
halve the time – reduce the duration by half
halve the cost – reduce the expense by fifty percent
🔄 Synonyms
cut by half (v. phrase) – to reduce something by exactly fifty percent
reduce by fifty percent (v. phrase) – to decrease an amount to half its original size
🚫 Antonyms
🌱 Derivatives
halved (adj.) – having been divided into halves or reduced by half
📖 Cultural Story
'Halve' originates from the Old English 'halfian', directly related to the noun 'half'. It embodies a fundamental mathematical and practical concept of division by two, frequently appearing in contexts from medieval land division to modern recipes and financial reports to denote precise reduction or splitting.
Meaning 2：divide into two equal parts (halve)
halve
/hɑːv/
v.
To cut or divide something into two equal parts.
divide into two equal parts
➕
/dɪˈvaɪd ˈɪntə tuː ˈiːkwəl pɑːts/
v.
To split or separate one whole object into two pieces of identical or nearly identical size.
📘 Details & Usage
📖 Example
She used a large knife to carefully halve the ripe watermelon for the picnic.
She used a large knife to carefully halve the ripe watermelon for the picnic.
🔗 Collocations
halve an apple – to cut an apple into two equal pieces
halve along the line – to cut something into two parts following a marked line
🔄 Synonyms
bisect (v.) – to divide into two equal parts, often used in more formal or geometric contexts
cut in half (v. phrase) – to divide something into two halves, typically with a blade
split down the middle (v. phrase) – to divide something into two equal sections, often lengthwise
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