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even

Pronunciation: /ˈiːvən/

The English word “even” has 20 meanings listed here.

adjective

  1. Flat and level.
  2. Without great variation.
  3. Equal in proportion, quantity, size, etc.
  4. Of an integer, divisible by two.
  5. Of a number, convenient for rounding other numbers to; for example, ending in a zero.
  6. On equal monetary terms; neither owing nor being owed.
  7. On equal terms of a moral sort; quits.
  8. Parallel; on a level; reaching the same limit.
  9. Without an irregularity, flaw, or blemish; pure.
  10. Associate; fellow; of the same condition.

verb

  1. To make flat and level.
  2. To equal or equate; to make the same.
  3. To be equal.
  4. To place in an equal state, as to obligation, or in a state in which nothing is due on either side; to balance, as accounts; to make quits.
  5. To set right; to complete.
  6. To act up to; to keep pace with.

adverb

  1. Exactly; just; fully.
  2. In reality (used to imply an extreme example in the case mentioned).
  3. Used to emphasise a comparative.
  4. Used to indicate a further degree of comparison.

Etymology

From Middle English even, from Old English efn (“flat; level, even, equal”), from Proto-West Germanic *ebn, from Proto-Germanic *ebnaz, from Proto-Indo-European *(h₁)em-no- (“equal, straight; flat, level, even”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian íeuwen (“even, flat”), West Frisian even (“even”), Alemannic German ëben (“even”), Cimbrian ébane (“even”), Dutch even (“even, equal, same”), effen…

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Definitions are from Wiktionary, extracted by Kaikki.org, and are available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.