half step
nounDefinition of half step
1
: a walking step of 15 inches or in double time of 18 inches
2
: a musical interval (such as E-F or B-C) equivalent to Âč/ââ of an octave
— called also semitone
Examples of half step in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The worldâs second largest meat company is moving a half step away from its age-old products by introducing a new line of ground beef thatâs 50% ground beef and 50% plant-based. — Chase Purdy, Quartz, "Americaâs biggest meat companies want to sell you âblended meatâ products," 15 June 2019 Dr Hildebrandtâs work is thus a half step along what is likely to be a very long road indeed. — The Economist, "IVF may bring northern white rhinos back from the brink of extinction," 4 July 2018 After crunching the data, the team found that on average the voice pitch of new mothers dropped by more than 5 percent, or the equivalent of a half step on the piano. — Julissa Treviño, Smithsonian, "Itâs TrueâAfter Giving Birth, Womenâs Voices Temporarily Drop," 1 June 2018 Then in the sixth inning, Astros third baseman Alex Bregman took away a hit from Mancini, backhanding a ball deep down the third-base line and throwing from foul territory to get Mancini be a half step. — Eduardo A. Encina, baltimoresun.com, "Inside-the-park flub just the beginning of rough night for Orioles left fielder Trey Mancini," 4 Apr. 2018 The elimination of the half step that produces a lesser bucket of revenue represents a two-fold win for publishers and songwriters in that previously the 80 cents per subscriber bucket always won out as the lesser pool. — Ed Christman, Billboard, "CRB Outlines Plans to Implement Simplified, Higher Streaming Royalty Rates," 29 Jan. 2018 Jackpot Airlines is about a half step above a commuter airline, and its crew members are either shopworn or under-motivated. — David Wiegand, San Francisco Chronicle, "Fox comedy is up in the air â maybe in a good way," 29 Dec. 2017 At his worst, McSwain fouled too much, looked a half step off the pace of the game and couldnât sustain production for long stretches. — Zach Osterman, Indianapolis Star, "IU basketball preseason profile: Can Freddie McSwain help on the glass, defense?," 16 Oct. 2017 Michelle Dockery stars as Letty, a career criminal whoâs only ever a half step ahead of the law. — Margaret Lyons, New York Times, "How Much Watching Time Do You Have This Weekend?," 14 Oct. 2017These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'half step.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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