'arf

noun

Half.

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Meanings

noun
  1. CockneyUKespeciallyrepresenting nonstandard or dialect pronunciationHalf.

    'Arf the night through he's at that game, the silly old juggins.

    1894, Arthur Conan Doyle, Round the Red Lamp
    1 more example

    Hasn't ye 'eard that devil's spawn of a capting an' is mates knockin' the bloomin' lights outen 'arf the crew?

    1914, Edgar Rice Burroughs, Tarzan of the Apes

Origin

A representation of the pronunciation of half by a speaker whose dialect is non-rhotic and also lacks the voiceless glottal fricative or transition ([h]).

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

'arf. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/'arf

MLA

“'arf.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/'arf. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “'arf,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/'arf.

Source: 'arf on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.