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

Executed on Halloween Night After Stumpp's confession, he was executed on Halloween night, Oct. 31, 1589. —Sean Neumann, People.com, 1 Feb. 2025

Contributor From plushies at retail stores to YouTube videos and Halloween costumes on the streets, Poppy Playtime character Huggy Wuggy’s terrifying likeness has become impossible to ignore. —Kyle J. Russell, USA TODAY, 31 Jan. 2025

Diamond had come to Hardwick from California, around Halloween, without a job or a place to stay, and started hanging around the Civic. —Chelsea Edgar, The New Yorker, 31 Jan. 2025

All about the first-ever fandom event The new Universal Fan Fest Nights featuring Star Trek, Back to the Future and Dungeons & Dragons promises to be a cross between Halloween Horror Nights and Comic-Con with walk-through attractions, fan zones, anime films and character meet-and-greets. —Brady MacDonald, Orange County Register, 30 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

short for All Hallow Even (All Saints' Eve)

First Known Use

circa 1700, in the meaning defined above

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.