Main Entry: ²even

Function: adjective

Etymology: Middle English, from Old English efen; akin to Old High German eban even

Date: before 12th century

1 a : having a horizontal surface : flat <even ground> b : being without break, indentation, or irregularity : smooth c : being in the same plane or line
2 a : free from variation : uniform <his disposition was even> b : level 4
3 a : equal, fair <an even exchange> b (1) : leaving nothing due on either side : square <we will not be even until you repay my visit> (2) : fully revenged c : being in equilibrium : balanced; specifically : showing neither profit nor loss d obsolete : candid
4 a : being any of the integers (as −2, 0, and +2) that are divisible by two without leaving a remainder b : marked by an even number c : being a mathematical function such that f(x) = f(−x) where the value remains unchanged if the sign of the independent variable is reversed
5 : exact, precise <an even dollar>
6 : as likely as not : fifty-fifty <an even chance of winning>

synonyms see level, steady

— even·ly adverb

— even·ness \-vən-nəs\ noun

— on an even keel also on even keel : in a sound or stable condition