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From the Old French meitié (French moitié), from Late Latin medietas “half”, from Latin medius “middle, half”




moiety (plural moieties)

  1. Half.
    • 1828, “The Zoological Society”, in T. Crofton Croker (editor), The Christmas Box:
      From New Holland the emu,
      With his better moiety,
      Has paid a visit to the Zo-
      Ological Society.
  2. A share or portion.
  3. (chemistry) A specific segment of a molecule.
    Aniline has both a phenyl and an amino moiety.
  4. (anthropology) Each descent group in a culture which is divided exactly into two descent groups.
    • William Shakespeare, Antony and Cleopatra:
      The death of Antony
      Is not a single doom; in the name lay
      A moiety of the world.

Derived terms[edit]