halfway house

noun

1

a

: a place to stop midway on a journey

b

: a halfway place in a progression

2

: a residence for individuals after release from institutionalization (as for mental illness, drug addiction, or criminal activity) that is designed to facilitate their readjustment to private life

Examples of halfway house in a Sentence

The car is the perfect halfway house between a family caravan and luxury sedan.

Recent Examples on the Web

Mother and daughter reunited in 1998, when Kenishea Frierson was 14 and her mom had just gotten out of a post-prison halfway house. —Brad Schmitt, The Tennessean, 21 Aug. 2025

The tabard was a sort of halfway house. —Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 19 Aug. 2025

Eichorn is residing at a halfway house in Duluth. —Mary Murphy, Twin Cities, 6 Aug. 2025

Arenas in 2010 pleaded guilty to felony gun possession, served two days in jail, spent time in a halfway house and was sentenced to two years of probation. —Jason Jones, New York Times, 1 Aug. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1648, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for halfway house

• boardinghouse
• charterhouse
• clearinghouse
• coffeehouse
• customhouse
• firehouse
• meetinghouse
• motherhouse
• packinghouse
• pilothouse
• powerhouse
• slaughterhouse

Kids Definition

halfway house

noun

: a place that provides living quarters and usually counseling to persons who have left an institution (as a prison or mental hospital) but are not ready to live in the community

Medical Definition

halfway house

noun

half·​way house ˈhaf-ˈwā-, ˈhȧf- 

: a center for individuals after institutionalization (as for mental illness or drug addiction) that is designed to facilitate their readjustment to private life

Legal Definition

halfway house

noun

half·​way house

: a residence for formerly institutionalized individuals (as mental patients, drug addicts, or convicts) that is designed to facilitate their readjustment to private life