moiety

Definition from Wiktionary, a free dictionary

Contents 1 English 1.1 Etymology 1.2 Pronunciation 1.3 Noun 1.3.1 Translations

[edit] English

Wikipedia

[edit] Etymology

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

[edit] Pronunciation

• (UK, US) IPA: /ˈmɔɪ.ə.ti/

[edit] Noun

moiety (plural moieties)

1. Half.
   • 1832, The Christmas Box, edited by T. Crofton Croker:

     From New Holland the emu,

     With his better moiety,

     Has paid a visit to the Zoological 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.

[edit] Translations