with one's goal unachieved; with one's ambition unfulfilled
Used when someone dies or is forced to give up before reaching their goal. Often appears in the patterns 志半ばで or 志半ばにして.
He passed away with his ambitions unfulfilled.
We carry on the wishes of our predecessors who fell before achieving their goals.
Compound of 志 (こころざし, 'ambition, will') and 半ば (なかば, 'halfway, mid-'). The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but the phrase is conventionally associated with the idea of being cut off in the middle of one's pursuit.