half-life

Meaning

1. The time required for half the nuclei in a sample of an isotope to undergo radioactive decay.
2. (physical) In a chemical reaction, the time required for the concentration of a reactant to fall from a chosen value to half that value.
3. The time it takes for a substance (drug, radioactive nuclide, or other) to lose half of its pharmacological, physiologic, or radiological activity.
4. The amount of time it takes for an idea or a fashion to lose half of its influential power.

Synonyms

half life

half-time

radioactive half-life

half time

midpoint

half-value period

component

half-life time

half

halftime

Translations

demi-vie

Halbwertszeit

període de semidesintegració

meia-vida

periodo de semidesintegración

halveringstijd

tempo di dimezzamento

período de semidesintegração

hemivida

emivita

període radioactiu

عمر النصف

halfwaardetijd

semivida

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ˈhæfˌlaɪf/

Etymology

From half- + life.