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Noun: half life  hãf lIf
  1. The time required for something to fall to half its initial value (in particular, the time for half the atoms in a radioactive substance to disintegrate)
    "The half life of uranium-238 is about 4.5 billion years";
    - half-life

Derived forms: half-lives

Type of: period, period of time, time period, time span

Encyclopedia: Half life