even

I. noun Etymology: Middle English even, eve, from Old English ǣfen Date: before 12th century archaic evening II. adjective Etymology: Middle English, from Old English efen; akin to Old High German eban even Date: before 12th century 1. a. having a horizontal surface ; flat <

even ground

> b. being without break, indentation, or irregularity ; smooth c. being in the same plane or line 2. a. free from variation ; uniform <

his disposition was even

> b. level 4 3. a. equal, fair <

an even exchange

> b. (1) leaving nothing due on either side ; square <

we will not be even until you repay my visit

> (2) fully revenged c. being in equilibrium ; balanced; specifically showing neither profit nor loss d. obsolete candid 4. a. being any of the integers (as -2, 0, and +2) that are exactly divisible by two b. marked by an even number c. being a mathematical function such that f(x) = f(-x) where the value remains unchanged if the sign of the independent variable is reversed 5. exact, precise <

an even dollar

> 6. as likely as not ; fifty-fifty <

an even chance of winning

> Synonyms: see level, steady • evenly adverb • evenness noun III. adverb Etymology: Middle English, from Old English efne, from efen, adjective Date: before 12th century 1. a. exactly, precisely b. to a degree that extends ; fully, quite <

faithful even unto death

> c. at the very time <

raining even as the sun came out

> 2. a. — used as an intensive to emphasize the identity or character of something <

he looked content, even happy

> <

forgot his car keys and even left the engine running

> b. — used as an intensive to stress an extreme or highly unlikely condition or instance <

so simple even a child can do it

> c. — used as an intensive to stress the comparative degree <

she did even better

> d. — used as an intensive to indicate a small or minimum amount <

didn't even try

> IV. verb (evened; evening) Date: 13th century transitive verb to make even intransitive verb to become even • evener noun