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Why "half" sounds different in British English
RP has /hɑːf/, with a long back vowel; American English has /hæf/, with the vowel of "cat". In both accents the L is silent, as in "calf" and "calm". The plural "halves" keeps the long vowel and voices the F: /hɑːvz/.
Spelled out in respelling, the British form looks like "harf", but there is no R in it. It is simply the long vowel of "father". In British English "half past seven" is often shortened to "half seven". Be careful: in German and Dutch the equivalent phrase means 6.30, a classic source of confusion.
How to say "half" like a Brit, step by step
- Breathe out a light h.
- Open into a long ah, as in "father". Don't pronounce the L.
- Finish with a soft, breathy f: hahf.
- For "halves", keep the vowel and change F to a buzzing v: hahvz.
Practise "half" in a sentence
- I'll meet you at half seven.
- Cut the lemon in half.
- Nearly half the team are working from home today.
Saying it once correctly is easy. Saying it right in the middle of a fast sentence is the hard part, which is why the sentences above matter more than the single word.
Frequently asked questions
How do you pronounce half in a British accent?
In Received Pronunciation, half is pronounced /hɑːf/, roughly "HAHF". Say hahf, with a long "ah" and a silent L.
Is the American pronunciation of half wrong?
No. /hæf/ is standard in American English. Both are correct, they simply belong to different accents. If you are learning a British accent, aim for /hɑːf/.
What does half seven mean in British English?
It means half past seven, 7.30. British speakers commonly drop the word past. It never means 6.30 in English, unlike the similar phrase in German or Dutch.