Halloween

noun

Hal·​low·​een ˌha-lə-ˈwēn  ˌhä- 

variants or less commonly Hallowe'en

: October 31 observed especially with dressing up in disguise, trick-or-treating, and displaying jack-o'-lanterns during the evening

Examples of Halloween in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Anthony Michael Hall, Thomas Dekker and Nicholas Hamilton are clocking in for Halloween Store. —Glenn Garner, Deadline, 21 Mar. 2025

Peacock Premium also offers new movies like Marry Me, Halloween Kills and Boss Baby 2 that are released on Peacock at the same time as their theatrical premieres. —Maya Gandara, StyleCaster, 21 Mar. 2025

Metroid Prime 4 should be one of Nintendo's hottest 2025 launches, Directive 8020 seems perfect for the Halloween season, and RPG lovers can get excited for Exodus and The Outer Worlds 2. —Fran Ruiz, Space.com, 19 Mar. 2025

Young readers continue to look up to Katniss Everdeen Katniss herself is a large draw for many readers (not to mention the Halloween costumes). —Clare Mulroy, USA TODAY, 19 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

short for All Hallow Even (All Saints' Eve)

First Known Use

circa 1700, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for Halloween

• acrolein
• adenine
• alkylene
• aniline
• anthracene
• aquiline
• asphaltene
• atlantean
• atrazine
• butadiene
• butylene
• caesarean

Kids Definition

Halloween

noun

Hal·​low·​een ˌhal-ə-ˈwēn  ˌhäl- 

: October 31 celebrated especially by wearing costumes, trick-or-treating, and displaying jack-o'-lanterns

Etymology

an altered form of All Hallow Even, the eve of All Saints' Day

Word Origin

Modern-day Christians know the first of November as All Saints' Day. In the Middle Ages it was called All Hallow Day. This was a hallowed or holy day celebrated in honor of all the saints in heaven. Since November 1 was a special holy day with a special name, the day before it had a special name as well. October 31 was called All Hallow Eve or All Hallow Even. The words eve and even were used both for the evening and the day before a special day. This name was sometimes written All Hallow E'en and later shortened to Halloween.