What does "halt" mean?
A cessation, either temporary or permanent.
Halt
/hɒlt/ adj, noun, verb
adj, noun, verb ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A cessation, either temporary or permanent.
- Grammar: halt is listed as adj, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: check, pause, stop, stop.
- Useful contrasts: active term, celestial motion, dutch schuiven.
- Usage evidence: The train was brought to a sudden halt.
How to use "halt"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "halt" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- 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 "halt" 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 "halt" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "halt" 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 "halt" is acting as adj, noun, verb 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 "check" 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 "halt", 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 A cessation, either temporary or permanent. obsolete
"The contract negotiations put a halt to operations."
- 2 Lameness; a limp. dated, obsolete
- 3 A small railroad station, usually unstaffed or with very few staff, and with few or no facilities. British, Ireland, obsolete
"Halts were normally unstaffed, tickets being sold on the train."
- 4 Acronym of hungry, angry, lonely, (or) tired. abbreviation, acronym, alt-of, uncountable
- 5 an interruption or temporary suspension of progress or movement wordnet
Show 3 more definitions
- 6 A minor railway station (usually unstaffed) in the United Kingdom. obsolete
"The halt itself never achieved much importance, even with workers coming to and from the adjacent works."
- 7 the event of something ending wordnet
- 8 the state of inactivity following an interruption wordnet
Verb
- 1 To limp; move with a limping gait. intransitive, obsolete
"Here comes Sir Toby halting — you shall hear more; but if he had not been in drink, he would have tickled you othergates than he did."
- 2 To stop marching. intransitive, obsolete
- 3 stop the flow of a liquid wordnet
- 4 To stand in doubt whether to proceed, or what to do; hesitate; be uncertain; linger; delay; mammer. intransitive, obsolete
"How long halt ye between two opinions?"
- 5 To stop either temporarily or permanently. intransitive, obsolete
"And it was while all were passionately intent upon the pleasing and snake-like progress of their uncle that a young girl in furs, ascending the stairs two at a time, peeped perfunctorily into the nursery as she passed the hallway—and halted amazed."
Show 8 more definitions
- 6 cause to come to an abrupt stop wordnet
- 7 To be lame, faulty, or defective, as in connection with ideas, or in measure, or in versification. intransitive, obsolete
- 8 To bring to a stop. obsolete, transitive
- 9 come to a halt, stop moving wordnet
- 10 To waver. obsolete
- 11 To cause to discontinue. obsolete, transitive
"The contract negotiations halted operations for at least a week."
- 12 stop from happening or developing wordnet
- 13 To falter. obsolete
Adjective
- 1 Lame, limping. archaic, obsolete
"It is better for the to goo halt into lyfe, then with ij. fete to be cast into hell […]"
Adjective
- 1 disabled in the feet or legs wordnet
Antonyms
active termcelestial motiondutch schuiveninitial long move
Example
"The train was brought to a sudden halt."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "halt"?
Common synonyms include: check, pause, stop, stop, stoppage, abandon.
How do you use "halt" in a sentence?
The train was brought to a sudden halt.
How do you pronounce "halt"?
Pronounced /hɒlt/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English halten, from Old English healtian (“to be lame, walk with a limp”), from Proto-West Germanic *haltōn, related to *halt. English usage in the sense of 'make a halt' is from the noun. Cognate with North Frisian halte, Swedish halta.
Etymology 2
From Middle French halt, from early modern German halt (“stop!”), imperative of halten (“to hold, to stop”). Doublet of hold (see that entry for more information).
Etymology 3
From Middle English halt, from Old English healt, from Proto-West Germanic *halt, from Proto-Germanic *haltaz (“halt, lame”), from Proto-Indo-European *kol-d-, from Proto-Indo-European *kel- (“to beat, strike, cut, slash”). Cognate with Danish halt, Swedish halt.
Etymology 4
Borrowed from French halte.