General use for 'half' of something, often in compound words or measurements.
このケーキをハーフに切ってください。
Please cut this cake in half.
biracial person; person of mixed parentage
Commonly refers to someone who is half-Japanese, but can apply to any mixed heritage. Considered a neutral descriptor in modern Japanese, though some may prefer other terms.
彼女は日本人とアメリカ人のハーフです。
She is half-Japanese and half-American.
Used in sports to refer to one of the two periods of play, such as in soccer or basketball.
前半のハーフで2点リードしている。
We are leading by two points in the first half.
Abbreviation of ハーフバック. Used in sports like soccer or rugby for the halfback position.
See also: ハーフバック
彼は高校時代、ラグビー部でハーフを務めていた。
He played as a halfback on the rugby team in high school.
9-hole half (of a round)
In golf, refers to the front nine or back nine holes of an 18-hole round.
今日は前半のハーフをパープレーで回った。
I played the front nine at even par today.
ミックス is a newer, more casual loanword some younger speakers use instead of ハーフ to describe a person of mixed heritage, avoiding the literal 'half' implication.
ハーフ is the common, older term for a biracial person, while ダブル is a rarer, more positive alternative emphasizing having two heritages rather than 'half' of one.
ハーフ is the common casual word for someone with one Japanese and one non-Japanese parent, whereas ムラート refers narrowly to the historical Black-and-white mixed-race category and is not used for Japanese mixed heritage.
ハーフ describes someone with one non-Japanese parent, whereas クォーター describes someone with only one non-Japanese grandparent.
halftime; half time
half-marathon
mixed-race features; half-Japanese face
partial teleworking; working half day at office, half from home
crossdresser; drag queen; transvestite · trans woman
Borrowed from English 'half'. The sense 'biracial person' is a uniquely Japanese usage.
three-quarter coat; half coat; top coat
half-size
halftone