Meanings
nounhalf rest (plural half rests)
plural half rests
- entertainmentA pause or interval of silence equal in duration to two quarter rests or one half of a whole rest. In common or 4/4 time, its duration is two beats.
Synonyms: minim rest
- entertainmentA symbol used in musical notation drawn as a solid rectangle directly above the middle line of a staff whose height is half the distance between lines.
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA pause or interval of silence equal in duration to two quarter rests or one half of a whole rest. In common or 4/4 time, its duration is two beats.
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Also see
Translations
Dutch halve rust, halve rust
- halve rustpause or interval of silence equal in duration to two quarter rests or one half of a whole rest
- halve rustsymbol for this pause
French demi-pause, demi-pause
- demi-pausepause or interval of silence equal in duration to two quarter rests or one half of a whole rest
- demi-pausesymbol for this pause
Cite this entry
APA
half rest. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/half%20rest
MLA
“half rest.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/half%20rest. Accessed November 3, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “half rest,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/half%20rest.
Source: half rest on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.