… war, pestilence, and famine had consumed … the moiety of the human species. Edward Gibbon
2
: one of the portions into which something is divided : component, part
an ether molecule with a benzene moiety
3
: one of two basic complementary tribal subdivisions
the pueblo's population is divided into two halves or moieties; the Squash, or Winter People, and the Turquoise, or Summer People Tom Bahti
Did you know?
Moiety is one of thousands of words that English speakers borrowed from French. The Anglo-French moité (meaning "a half" or "part of something") comes from Late Latin medietat-, meaning "a half." Around the same time that moiety was borrowed from Anglo-French, medietat- was also borrowed directly from Latin as mediety, a word which can also mean "a half." Medietat- comes from Latin medius (meaning "middle"), which has contributed to such English words as medium, meridian, and milieu.
Recent Examples on the WebThe Google Doodle features Peratrovich speaking into a microphone at a podium with a raven behind her, representing her Lukaax̱.ádi clan — a Raven moiety. Samantha Davenport, Anchorage Daily News, 31 Dec. 2020 That was done so the hat maker would come from a non-Raven moiety. Ben Hohenstatt, Anchorage Daily News, 6 Oct. 2019 GHF Language and Projects Lead Fred White said though the original plan was to make this an Eagle pole, a committee of elders from GHF and DIA decided instead to honor a specific clan of the Eagle moiety, the Yanyeidi. Alex Mccarthy, The Seattle Times, 16 Dec. 2017 At this ceremony, representatives of the opposite moiety recognize the unveiling of an official clan crest object. Meilan Solly, Smithsonian, 11 Sep. 2017 The announcement of HTTPanties is not a single doom; in the name lays a moiety of the world. Rob Beschizza, WIRED, 8 Feb. 2007
Word History
Etymology
Middle English moite, from Anglo-French meité, moité, from Late Latin medietat-, medietas, from Latin medius middle — more at mid