Halt (noun/verb)
Meaning: As a noun: A temporary stop or cessation of activity. As a verb: To bring to a stop or to cease an action or activity.
Examples:
- Noun: The sudden halt of the assembly line caused a delay in production.
- Verb: The police officer signaled the car to halt by the side of the road.
- Noun: The negotiations came to a halt when both parties failed to reach an agreement.
Synonyms: Noun: stop, cessation, pause, standstill, break Verb: stop, cease, end, discontinue, suspend
Antonyms: Noun: continuation, progress, flow, activity, movement Verb: continue, proceed, persist, resume, advance
Collocations:
- Halt and catch fire: An idiomatic expression referring to an unexpected and catastrophic failure. Example: "The computer system suddenly came to a halt and caught fire."
- Grinding to a halt: To slow down and stop gradually. Example: "The traffic on the highway was so heavy that it eventually came to a grinding halt."
- Came to a screeching halt: To stop suddenly and with a loud noise. Example: "The car came to a screeching halt to avoid hitting the pedestrian."
Idioms:
- Call a halt: To order a stop to an activity or process. Example: "The coach decided to call a halt to the practice due to the approaching storm."
- Halt in its tracks: To stop something abruptly. Example: "The unexpected news halted the project in its tracks, and everyone had to reassess the situation."
- Bring to a screeching halt: To stop something suddenly and dramatically. Example: "The economic crisis brought the company's growth to a screeching halt."
Expressions:
- Come to a halt: To stop completely. Example: "The train came to a halt at the platform, and passengers started getting off."
- Grind to a halt: To slow down and stop gradually. Example: "The economy began to grind to a halt as businesses closed and unemployment rose."
- Screeching halt: A sudden and noisy stop. Example: "The car's brakes brought it to a screeching halt just in time to avoid a collision."
Word Family:
- Adjective: Halted
- Noun: Halting
- Noun (Agent noun): Haltingness (Quality of being hesitant or stopping)
- Verb (Related): Hesitate (To pause before taking action)
- Collocation
halt (hôlt) verb
- To cause or force to stop moving or functioning temporarily.
e.g. "The president ordered the military to halt its advance." - To voluntarily or involuntarily stop moving or functioning.
e.g. "The train has halted at the station."
Collocations:
- call/put/bring/force a halt - To demand or compel something to stop operating or progressing.
- temporary/momentary halt - A stopping that is only for a brief period of time before resuming.
- abrupt/sudden halt - An unanticipated or unplanned stop.
- grinding/screeching halt - An extremely abrupt or jarring stop, often associated with braking noises.
- complete/dead/total halt - A stopping of all movement or action.
- come/grind to a halt - To gradually or roughly decelerate to a full stop.
- indefinite halt - A pause of indeterminate or unknown duration.
- halt proceedings/operations - To suspend or pause an ongoing event or organized activity.
- lift/ease the halt - To relax or partly undo a prohibitive stop that was previously enacted.
- grinding country to a halt - Bringing all normal functions or processes to a standstill across an entire nation.
- They had to force a halt to the construction due to safety concerns.
- The traffic flow came to a temporary halt as workers repaired the road.
- The sudden rainstorm brought an abrupt halt to the outdoor event.
- The car screeched to a grinding halt as the driver hit the brakes hard.
- The machinery malfunction caused a complete halt in production.
- The train came to a halt at the platform as passengers disembarked.
- Due to unforeseen issues, the project was put on an indefinite halt.
- The authorities decided to halt proceedings until further evidence could be gathered.
- The government announced plans to lift the halt on certain economic activities.
- The ongoing strike threatened to bring the economy to a grinding halt.
These examples demonstrate how the term "halt" can be used to describe various forms of stopping, pausing, and suspending activities or processes in different contexts.