Halloween
noun
Hal·low·een
ˌha-lə-ˈwēn 
ˌhä-
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
Young Thug is locked in to perform his first live show since coming home from prison last Halloween.
—
Angel Diaz, Billboard, 25 Feb. 2025
March is almost upon us, and with it a brand new lineup of free PlayStation Plus Essential games just in time for Halloween season.
—Erik Kain, Forbes, 25 Feb. 2025
Lemon then dived into Kelly’s problematic past, including the notorious moment from 2018 when Kelly defended Blackface costumes for Halloween.
—Zack Sharf, Variety, 25 Feb. 2025
For the event, which took place at the Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles, the Halloween actress also wore black opera gloves as well as oversized gold earrings.
—Catherine Santino, People.com, 24 Feb. 2025
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Angel Diaz, Billboard, 25 Feb. 2025
March is almost upon us, and with it a brand new lineup of free PlayStation Plus Essential games just in time for Halloween season.
—Erik Kain, Forbes, 25 Feb. 2025
Lemon then dived into Kelly’s problematic past, including the notorious moment from 2018 when Kelly defended Blackface costumes for Halloween.
—Zack Sharf, Variety, 25 Feb. 2025
For the event, which took place at the Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles, the Halloween actress also wore black opera gloves as well as oversized gold earrings.
—Catherine Santino, People.com, 24 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for Halloween
Cite this Entry
“Halloween.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Halloween. Accessed 12 Mar. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
Halloween
noun
Hal·low·een
ˌhal-ə-ˈwēn
ˌhäl-
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.
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