*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of halt

From Middle French halt, from early modern German halt (“stop!”), imperative of halten (“to hold, to stop”). Doublet of hold (see that entry for more information).

4 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 4 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗
verb

To stop marching. · To stop either temporarily or permanently. · To bring to a stop. · To cause to discontinue.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From Middle French halt, from early modern German halt (“stop!”), imperative of halten (“to hold, to stop”). Doublet of hold (see that entry for more information).

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

  • Derivation mentionhaltfrm
  • Derivation mentionhaltde
  • Doublet mentionholden
Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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      "name": "etymid",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "to stop"
      },
      "expansion": ""
    },
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      "name": "der",
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        "1": "en",
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      "expansion": "Middle French halt"
    },
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      "name": "der",
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        "2": "de",
        "3": "halt",
        "4": "",
        "5": "stop!"
      },
      "expansion": "German halt (“stop!”)"
    },
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      "hold",
      "hold#English"
    ]
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Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
verb

To limp; move with a limping gait. · To stand in doubt whether to proceed, or what to do; hesitate; be uncertain; linger; delay; mammer. · To be lame, faulty, or defective, as in connection with ideas, or in measure, or in versification. · To waver.

noun

A cessation, either temporary or permanent. · A minor railway station (usually unstaffed) in the United Kingdom.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From Middle English halten, from Old English healtian (“to be lame, walk with a limp”), from Proto-West Germanic *haltōn, related to *halt. English usage in the sense of 'make a halt' is from the noun. Cognate with North Frisian halte, Swedish halta.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

This page abbreviates 1 auxiliary source items. The etymology narrative is not shortened. Omission counts are available in the audit fields below; consult the original for complete auxiliary material.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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      "name": "inh",
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        "To limp; move with a limping gait.",
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        "To waver."
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Source etymology 3

Original entry ↗
adj

Lame, limping.

noun

Lameness; a limp.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From Middle English halt, from Old English healt, from Proto-West Germanic *halt, from Proto-Germanic *haltaz (“halt, lame”), from Proto-Indo-European *kol-d-, from Proto-Indo-European *kel- (“to beat, strike, cut, slash”). Cognate with Danish halt, Swedish halt.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

  • Inherited-form mentionhaltenm
  • Inherited-form mentionhealtang
  • Inherited-form mention*haltgmw-pro
  • Inherited-form mention*haltazgem-pro · halt, lame
  • Derivation mention*kol-d-ine-pro
  • Derivation mention*kel-ine-pro · to beat, strike, cut, slash
  • Cognate mentionhaltda
  • Cognate mentionhaltsv
Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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Source etymology 4

Original entry ↗
noun

A small railroad station, usually unstaffed or with very few staff, and with few or no facilities.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Borrowed from French halte. See also Etymology 2.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

  • Borrowed-form mentionhaltefr
Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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      "name": "bor+",
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Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for halt →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-aGFsdA