while
noun
[ wʌɪl ]
• a period of time.
• "we chatted for a while"
Similar:
time,
spell,
stretch,
stint,
span,
season,
interval,
period,
period of time,
length of time,
duration,
run,
phase,
stage,
term,
patch,
• at the same time; meanwhile.
• "he starts to draw, talking the while"
while
conjunction
• during the time that; at the same time as.
• "nothing much changed while he was away"
• whereas (indicating a contrast).
• "one person wants out, while the other wants the relationship to continue"
while
adverb
• during which.
• "the period while the animal remains alive"
while
verb
• pass time in a leisurely manner.
• "a diversion to while away the long afternoons"
while
preposition
• until.
• "father will be happy while dinner time"
Origin:
Old English hwīl ‘period of time’, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch wijl, German Weile ; the conjunction is an abbreviation of Old English thā hwīle the ‘the while that’.
