What does while mean?
Definitions for while
ʰwaɪl, waɪlwhile
Here are all the possible meanings and translations of the word while.
Princeton's WordNet
while, piece, spell, patch(noun)
a period of indeterminate length (usually short) marked by some action or condition
"he was here for a little while"; "I need to rest for a piece"; "a spell of good weather"; "a patch of bad weather"
Wiktionary
while(Noun)
A certain duration of time, a period of time.
He lectured for quite a long while.
Etymology: hwil. Cognate with wil.
while(Verb)
To pass (time) idly.
Etymology: hwil. Cognate with wil.
while(Conjunction)
During the same time that.
He was sleeping while I was singing.
Etymology: hwil. Cognate with wil.
while(Conjunction)
although
This case, while interesting, is a bit frustrating.
Etymology: hwil. Cognate with wil.
while(Conjunction)
until
Etymology: hwil. Cognate with wil.
Webster Dictionary
While(noun)
space of time, or continued duration, esp. when short; a time; as, one while we thought him innocent
Etymology: [AS. hwl; akin to OS. hwl, hwla, OFries. hwle, D. wigl, G. weile, OHG. wla, hwla, hwl, Icel. hvla a bed, hvld rest, Sw. hvila, Dan. hvile, Goth. hweila a time, and probably to L. quietus quiet, and perhaps to Gr. the proper time of season. 20. Cf. Quiet, Whilom.]
While(noun)
that which requires time; labor; pains
Etymology: [AS. hwl; akin to OS. hwl, hwla, OFries. hwle, D. wigl, G. weile, OHG. wla, hwla, hwl, Icel. hvla a bed, hvld rest, Sw. hvila, Dan. hvile, Goth. hweila a time, and probably to L. quietus quiet, and perhaps to Gr. the proper time of season. 20. Cf. Quiet, Whilom.]
While(verb)
to cause to pass away pleasantly or without irksomeness or disgust; to spend or pass; -- usually followed by away
Etymology: [AS. hwl; akin to OS. hwl, hwla, OFries. hwle, D. wigl, G. weile, OHG. wla, hwla, hwl, Icel. hvla a bed, hvld rest, Sw. hvila, Dan. hvile, Goth. hweila a time, and probably to L. quietus quiet, and perhaps to Gr. the proper time of season. 20. Cf. Quiet, Whilom.]
While(verb)
to loiter
Etymology: [AS. hwl; akin to OS. hwl, hwla, OFries. hwle, D. wigl, G. weile, OHG. wla, hwla, hwl, Icel. hvla a bed, hvld rest, Sw. hvila, Dan. hvile, Goth. hweila a time, and probably to L. quietus quiet, and perhaps to Gr. the proper time of season. 20. Cf. Quiet, Whilom.]
While
during the time that; as long as; whilst; at the same time that; as, while I write, you sleep
Etymology: [AS. hwl; akin to OS. hwl, hwla, OFries. hwle, D. wigl, G. weile, OHG. wla, hwla, hwl, Icel. hvla a bed, hvld rest, Sw. hvila, Dan. hvile, Goth. hweila a time, and probably to L. quietus quiet, and perhaps to Gr. the proper time of season. 20. Cf. Quiet, Whilom.]
While
hence, under which circumstances; in which case; though; whereas
Etymology: [AS. hwl; akin to OS. hwl, hwla, OFries. hwle, D. wigl, G. weile, OHG. wla, hwla, hwl, Icel. hvla a bed, hvld rest, Sw. hvila, Dan. hvile, Goth. hweila a time, and probably to L. quietus quiet, and perhaps to Gr. the proper time of season. 20. Cf. Quiet, Whilom.]
While
until; till
Etymology: [AS. hwl; akin to OS. hwl, hwla, OFries. hwle, D. wigl, G. weile, OHG. wla, hwla, hwl, Icel. hvla a bed, hvld rest, Sw. hvila, Dan. hvile, Goth. hweila a time, and probably to L. quietus quiet, and perhaps to Gr. the proper time of season. 20. Cf. Quiet, Whilom.]
Freebase
While
"While" is a word in the English language that functions both as a noun and as a subordinating conjunction. Its meaning varies largely based on its intended function, position in the phrase and even the writer or speaker's regional dialect. As a conjunction, it is synonymous with the word "whilst", a form often considered archaic in American and Canadian English, as well as in some style guides on both sides of the Atlantic.
Chambers 20th Century Dictionary
While
hwīl, n. a space of time: trouble spent.—adv. during the time that: at the same time that, as long as.—v.t. to cause to pass without irksomeness (with away).—conjs. While, Whilst, as long as: at the same time that: (Shak.) until; Whiles (B.), while, at the same time that.—adv. (Scot.) at times (orig. gen. of A.S. hwíl).—advs. Whī′lom, Whī′lome (Milt.), formerly, once (orig. dat. pl. of A.S. hwíl, time).—Every once in a while, now and then; The while (Shak.), in the meantime; The whilst (Shak.), while: in the meantime; Worth while, worth the trouble and time taken. [A.S. hwíl; Goth. hweila, Ger. weile.]
Editors Contribution
while
A period of known time.
While at the shop we saw some new cheese we thought we'd try.
Submitted by MaryC on March 19, 2020
British National Corpus
Spoken Corpus Frequency
Rank popularity for the word 'while' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #149
Written Corpus Frequency
Rank popularity for the word 'while' in Written Corpus Frequency: #554
Nouns Frequency
Rank popularity for the word 'while' in Nouns Frequency: #744
Numerology
Chaldean Numerology
The numerical value of while in Chaldean Numerology is: 2
Pythagorean Numerology
The numerical value of while in Pythagorean Numerology is: 3
Examples of while in a Sentence
The likelihood of the negative trend in output being stymied any time soon appears slim, with demand for goods from both domestic and international sources waning further, asian goods producers face headwinds from slowing growth in Europe and China, while global trade risks are yet to be mitigated by a breakthrough in US-Sino relations.
I have been in law enforcement all of my adult life, and this horrific incident shocks and angers me more than anything I have encountered in my career, while we still don't know what drove the suspect to commit this heinous act, there is no excuse that can justify the cold-blooded murder of multiple victims.
Attorney General Matthew Whitaker:
I believe Bill Barr when he says the President tweeting about cases is not helpful for him running the Department of Justice and administering justice, i was lucky that I didn't have the President tweeting about cases, except for the Mueller investigation while I was acting attorney general.
It's still different for women, it's only a woman whose appearance would be talked about while running for president -- never a man. And that's what women understand.
It is certain that either wise bearing or ignorant carriage is caught, as men take diseases, one from another; therefore, let all take heed as to the society in which they mingle, for in a little while they will be like it.
Popularity rank by frequency of use
Translations for while
From our Multilingual Translation Dictionary
- عندما, بينماArabic
- estona, mentre, malgratCatalan, Valencian
- byť, chvíle, zatímcoCzech
- medens, mensDanish
- obwohl, Weilchen, Zeitspanne, solange, Weile, währendGerman
- καθώς, αν και, καίτοι, διάστημα, χρόνος, ενόσω, ενώ, περνώ, μολονότιGreek
- dum, kvankamEsperanto
- aunque, vagar, rato, siempre y cuando, mientrasSpanish
- aika, sillä aikaa kun, vaikka, samaan aikaan kunFinnish
- moment, quoique, tant, pendant que, bien que, tandis queFrench
- skoftWestern Frisian
- agus, tamallIrish
- greisScottish Gaelic
- mentres, namentres, entrementres, tempoGalician
- जबHindi
- ben que, tempore, durante queInterlingua
- seraya, sementaraIndonesian
- dum ke, dumIdo
- benché, malgrado, mentreItalian
- 時, 間, ...ながらJapanese
- 하는 동안Korean
- ماوه, ئهگهرچیKurdish
- dumLatin
- kamērLatvian
- макар, иако, додекаMacedonian
- sementara, semasaMalay
- terwijl, tijdje, momentje, poosje, een hele tijdDutch
- stund, medan, mensNorwegian
- yínee'Navajo, Navaho
- chociaż, gdy, chwila, jakiś czasPolish
- embora, enquanto, malgrado, tempoPortuguese
- deși, în timp ceRomanian
- хотя, в то время, как, вре́мя, [[промежу́ток]] [[время, до тех пор, пока, покаRussian
- dok, докSerbo-Croatian
- stund, tag, fastän, medanSwedish
- rağmen, iken, -kenTurkish
- جبکہUrdu
- moumint, mågré ki, sol tins ki, houbonde, tins ki, hapêye, cwekiWalloon
- בשעתYiddish
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"while." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2021. Web. 28 Feb. 2021. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/while>.