Even

/ˈiː.vən/ adj, adv, name, noun, verb, slang

adj, adv, name, noun, verb, slang ·Top 500 ·Elementary level

Meaning at a glance

  • Primary sense: An even number.
  • Grammar: even is listed as adj, adv, name, noun, verb, slang.
  • Nearest alternatives: a fortiori, above all, absolutely, accommodate.
  • Useful contrasts: odd, uneven, angled.
  • Usage evidence: I don't want to lose my ideas, even though some of them are a bit extreme.

How to use "even"

  1. Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
  2. Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "even" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
  3. Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.

Meaning check

  • Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
  • Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
  • Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
  • Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?

Source and review context

This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "even" in a final draft.

If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.

Before you rely on this definition

Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "even" as the right word for your sentence.

If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "even" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.

Compare nearby meanings

  • Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
  • Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
  • Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
  • Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.

Definition decision workflow

1. Identify the role

Check whether "even" is acting as adj, adv, name, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.

2. Test the nearest option

Compare it with "a fortiori" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.

3. Confirm with context

Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.

Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.

Final meaning check

Before publishing a sentence with "even", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.

When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    An even number. diminutive

    "So let's see. There are two evens here and three odds."

  2. 2
    Evening. archaic, poetic

    "We'll meet at even, when the sun is set."

  3. 3
    An ethnic Even: a member of an indigenous people living in Siberia and the Russian Far East.
  4. 4
    the latter part of the day (the period of decreasing daylight from late afternoon until nightfall) wordnet
Verb
  1. 1
    To make flat and level. transitive

    "We need to even this playing field; the west goal is too low."

  2. 2
    make even or more even wordnet
  3. 3
    To equal or equate; to make the same. obsolete, transitive

    "The Engliſh Earl [William Longespée the Younger], though he ſtood on the lower ground in point of birth, yet conceived himſelf to even him [Robert I, Count of Artois] in valour and martiall knowledge."

  4. 4
    become even or more even wordnet
  5. 5
    To be equal. intransitive, obsolete

    "Thrice nine evens twenty seven."

Show 4 more definitions
  1. 6
    make level or straight wordnet
  2. 7
    To place in an equal state, as to obligation, or in a state in which nothing is due on either side; to balance, as accounts; to make quits. obsolete, transitive

    "We need to even the score."

  3. 8
    To set right; to complete. obsolete, transitive
  4. 9
    To act up to; to keep pace with. obsolete, transitive

    "Prithee away, There's more to be considered: but we'll even All that good time will give us."

Adjective
  1. 1
    Flat and level.

    "Clear out those rocks. The surface must be even."

  2. 2
    Without great variation.

    "Despite her fear, she spoke in an even voice."

  3. 3
    Equal in proportion, quantity, size, etc.

    "The distribution of food must be even."

  4. 4
    Of an integer, divisible by two. not-comparable

    "Four, fourteen and forty are even numbers."

  5. 5
    Of a number, convenient for rounding other numbers to; for example, ending in a zero. informal

    "Coles. How many shares have you bought, Mr. Garfinkle? Garfinkle. One hundred and ninety-six thousand.[…] Jorgenson. […] How'd you figure out to buy such an odd amount? Why not two hundred thousand — nice even number. Thought you liked nice even numbers."

Show 5 more definitions
  1. 6
    On equal monetary terms; neither owing nor being owed.
  2. 7
    On equal terms of a moral sort; quits. colloquial

    "You biffed me back at the barn, and I biffed you here—so now we're even."

  3. 8
    Parallel; on a level; reaching the same limit.

    "And shall lay thee even with the ground."

  4. 9
    Without an irregularity, flaw, or blemish; pure. obsolete

    "I know my life so even."

  5. 10
    Associate; fellow; of the same condition. obsolete

    "His even servant."

Adjective
  1. 1
    equal in degree or extent or amount; or equally matched or balanced wordnet
  2. 2
    of the score in a contest wordnet
  3. 3
    being level or straight or regular and without variation as e.g. in shape or texture; or being in the same plane or at the same height as something else (i.e. even with) wordnet
  4. 4
    divisible by two wordnet
  5. 5
    occurring at fixed intervals wordnet
Show 1 more definition
  1. 6
    symmetrically arranged wordnet
Adverb
  1. 1
    Exactly; just; fully. archaic, not-comparable

    "I fulfilled my instructions even as I had promised."

  2. 2
    In reality (used to imply an extreme example in the case mentioned). not-comparable

    "Even a blind squirrel finds an acorn sometimes."

  3. 3
    Used to emphasise a comparative. not-comparable

    "I was strong before, but now I am even stronger."

  4. 4
    Used to indicate a further degree of comparison. not-comparable

    "Bob is taller than Alice, but Cameron is even taller than Bob."

  5. 5
    Rather; that is (used to signal a correction of a previous utterance). not-comparable

    "My favorite actor is Jack Nicklaus. Jack Nicholson, even."

Adverb
  1. 1
    used as an intensive especially to indicate something unexpected wordnet
  2. 2
    to a greater degree or extent; used with comparisons wordnet
  3. 3
    in spite of; notwithstanding wordnet
  4. 4
    to the full extent wordnet
Proper Noun
  1. 1
    A Tungusic language spoken by the Evens in Siberia and the Russian Far East.

Synonyms

All synonyms
a fortioriabove allabsolutelyaccommodateaccordantadjust

Example

"I don't want to lose my ideas, even though some of them are a bit extreme."

Common questions

What does "even" mean?

An even number.

What is a synonym for "even"?

Common synonyms include: a fortiori, above all, absolutely, accommodate, accordant, adjust.

How do you use "even" in a sentence?

I don't want to lose my ideas, even though some of them are a bit extreme.

How do you pronounce "even"?

Pronounced /ˈiː.vən/.

Etymology

Etymology 1

From Middle English even, from Old English efn (“flat; level, even, equal”), from Proto-West Germanic *ebn, from Proto-Germanic *ebnaz, from Proto-Indo-European *(h₁)em-no- (“equal, straight; flat, level, even”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian íeuwen (“even, flat”), West Frisian even (“even”), Alemannic German ëben (“even”), Cimbrian ébane (“even”), Dutch even (“even, equal, same”), effen (“leveled”), German eben (“even, flat, level”), Danish jævn (“even, flat, smooth”), Icelandic jafn (“even”), Norwegian Bokmål jevn (“even, smooth”), Norwegian Nynorsk jamn (“even, smooth”), Swedish jämn (“even, level, smooth”), Gothic 𐌹𐌱𐌽𐍃 (ibns, “even”), Old Cornish eun (“equal, right”) (attested in Vocabularium Cornicum eun-hinsic (“iustus, i. e., just”)), Old Breton eun (“equal, right”) (attested in Eutychius Glossary eunt (“aequus, i. e., equal”)), Middle Breton effn, Breton eeun, Sanskrit अम्नस् (amnás, “(adverb) just, just now; at once”). The verb descends from Middle English evenen, from Old English efnan; the adverb from Middle English evene, from Old English efne. The traditional proposal connecting the Germanic adjective with the root Proto-Indo-European *h₂eym- (Latin imāgō (“picture, image, likeness, copy”), Latin aemulus (“competitor, rival”), Sanskrit यम (yamá, “pair, twin”)) is problematic from a phonological point of view. For the meaning development compare with Latin aequus (“equal, level, even, flat, horizontal”), Russian ро́вный (róvnyj, “even, level, flat, smooth”), ра́вный (rávnyj, “equal”), по́ровну (pórovnu, “in equal parts”).

Etymology 2

From Middle English even, from Old English ǣfen, from Proto-West Germanic *ābanþ, from Proto-Germanic *ēbanþs (“evening”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian Äivend, Äiwend, Eeuwend (“evening”), West Frisian jûn (“evening”), Dutch avond (“evening”), Low German Avend (“evening”), German Abend (“evening”), Danish aften (“evening”). See also the related terms eve and evening.

Etymology 3

Borrowed from Russian эве́н (evén), from Even эвэн (əwən). Compare Evenki.

More for "even"

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