even

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See also Even, and éven

Contents

[edit] English

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[edit] Pronunciation

[edit] Etymology 1

From Middle English, from Old English efen, efn, emn (“even, equal, like, level, just, impartial, true”), from Proto-Germanic *ebnaz, *ibnaz, *imnaz (“plain, level, even”), from Proto-Indo-European *aim-, *aeim-, *iem- (“similarity, resemblance”). Cognate with West Frisian even (“even”), Dutch even (“even, equal, same”), German eben (“even, flat, level”), Danish jævn (“even, flat, smooth”), Swedish jämn (“even, level, smooth”), Icelandic jafn, jamn (“even, equal”), Latin imāgō (“picture, image, likeness, copy”), Latin aemulus (“competitor, rival”), Sanskrit  (yamá, “pair, twin”).

[edit] Adjective

even (comparative more even, superlative most even)

  1. Flat and level.
    Clear out those rocks. The surface must be even.
  2. Without great variation.
    Despite her fear, she spoke in an even voice.
  3. Equal in proportion, quantity, size, etc.
    The distribution of food must be even.
  4. (arithmetic, of an integer, not comparable) Divisible by two.
    Four, fourteen and forty are even numbers.
  5. (of a number) Convenient for rounding other numbers to; for example, ending in a zero.
    • 1989, Jerry Sterner, Other People's Money, Act I:
      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.
    • 1998, Marya Hornbacher, Wasted, chapter 8, 1999 HarperPerennial paperback edition, ISBN 0060930934, page 253 [1]:
      He put me on the scale in my underwear and socks: 82 pounds. […] I left, humming all day long, remembering that once upon a time my ideal weight had been 84, and now I'd even beaten that. I decided 80 was a better number, a nice even number to be.
[edit] Usage notes
  • Because of confusion with the "divisible by two" sense, use of even to mean "convenient for rounding" is rare; the synonym round is more common.
[edit] Synonyms
[edit] Antonyms
[edit] Derived terms
[edit] Translations
flat and level
without great variation
equal
arithmetic: divisible by two

[edit] Verb

even (third-person singular simple present evens, present participle evening, simple past and past participle evened)

  1. To make flat and level.
    We need to even this playing field; the west goal is too low.
[edit] Synonyms

(to make flat and level): flatten, level

[edit] Derived terms
[edit] Translations
make even

[edit] Etymology 2

Old English efen

[edit] Adverb

even (not comparable)

  1. (archaic) exactly, just, fully
    I fulfilled my instructions even as I had promised.
    You are leaving tonight? — Even so.
    This is my commandment, that ye love one another, even as I have loved you.
  2. Implying an extreme example in the case mentioned, as compared to the implied reality
    Even a blind squirrel finds an acorn sometimes.
    Did you even make it through the front door?
    That was before I was even born.
  3. Emphasizing a comparative
    I was strong before; but now I am even stronger.
[edit] Derived terms
[edit] Translations
exactly, fully
implying extreme example
emphasising comparative

[edit] Etymology 3

Old English ǣfen. Cognate with Dutch avond, German Abend.

[edit] Noun

even (plural evens)

  1. (archaic or poetic) Evening.
    • 1526, William Tyndale, trans. Bible, Matthew ch. 8:
      When the even was come they brought unto him many that were possessed with devylles [...].
[edit] Synonyms
[edit] Derived terms
[edit] Translations
Evening of the day

[edit] Statistics

[edit] Anagrams

[edit] Dutch

[edit] Etymology

From Old Dutch *evan, from Proto-Germanic *ebnaz.

[edit] Pronunciation

[edit] Adverb

even

  1. shortly, briefly
    Ik zal even voor u kijken.
    I shall have a look for you shortly.
  2. for a short period, for a while
    In de tweede helft van de 19e eeuw bloeide Vollenhove weer even op.[2] — In the second half of the 19th century, Vollenhove flourished again for a while.
  3. for a moment; modal particle indicating that the speaker expects that something will require little time or effort.
    Zou je even de deur voor me dicht willen doen?
    Could you please close the door for me (for a moment)?
  4. just as, to the same degree (used with an adjective)
    In het midden van de vloer stond een tafel van wel vier meter hoog en een even grote stoel er bij.
    In the middle of the floor there stood a four-metre tall table and a chair just as large beside it.
  5. quite, rather
    Die is even kwaad!
    He's rather angry!

[edit] Synonyms

[edit] Adjective

even (not comparable)

  1. even, opposite of odd

[edit] Declension

Declension of even
positive comparative superlative
attributive predicative/adverbial
predicative/adverbial even —  
neuter
singular		 indefinite even —
definite even — — —
common singular even — — —
plural even — — —
partitive evens —  


[edit] Antonyms

[edit] Derived terms

[edit] Anagrams

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