半数|はんすうhansuu[3]nakadaka (mid-high)

1. no-adjectivehalf the number; half (of an amount)
   学生がくせいの半数はんすうが休やすんでいた。↗

   Half the students were absent.
2. no-adjective, biologyhaploid (organism, cell, etc.); haplont

• Synonym半分はんぶんNeutralAlso means half, as in 「半分に切る」; common in colloquial speech and not limited to numbers, unlike 「半数」.
• Synonym二分の一にぶんのいちWrittenA written/formal way to say one-half; leans toward mathematical ratios and proportions.
• Related半はんNeutralMeans half but is used mostly as a prefix, as in 「半年」 and 「半額」; 「半数」 specifically refers to half of a number of people or things.
• Antonym全数ぜんすうWrittenA written/formal word for the total number or amount; it is the opposite of 「半数」, which covers only half.

Use 「半数」 for half of a total number or quantity, as in 「過半数」 and 「半数以上が賛成」. For half in everyday speech use 「半分」; as a prefix use 「半」. 「二分の一」 is the written/formal one-half, and 「全数」 is its opposite.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

1. 全体ぜんたいの半分はんぶんの数かず。