biweekly

1 of 2

adjective

bi·​week·​ly (ˌ)bī-ˈwē-klē How to pronounce biweekly (audio)
1
: occurring every two weeks : fortnightly
2
: occurring twice a week
biweekly adverb
What do bimonthly and biweekly mean?: Usage Guide

Many people are puzzled about bimonthly and biweekly, which are often ambiguous because they are formed from two different senses of bi-: "occurring every two" and "occurring two times." This ambiguity has been in existence for nearly a century and a half and cannot be eliminated by the dictionary. The chief difficulty is that many users of these words assume that others know exactly what they mean, and they do not bother to make their context clear. So if you need bimonthly or biweekly, you should leave some clues in your context to the sense of bi- you mean. And if you need the meaning "twice a," you can substitute semi- for bi-. Biannual and biennial are usually differentiated.

biweekly

2 of 2

noun

1
: a publication issued every two weeks
2

Examples of biweekly in a Sentence

Adjective The biweekly mortgage loan was started in Canada and is now offered by lenders in the United States. This loan is similar to the standard fixed-rate loan except for the frequency of payments. Instead of making one monthly payment, the borrower makes a payment equal to one-half of the normal monthly payment every two weeks … Stephen R. Mettling et al., Modern Residential Financing Methods, 1990
Last week ABC brought back Dick Cavett … and introduced syndicated newspaper columnist Jimmy Breslin as Cavett's biweekly alternate (Thursday and Fridays). Harry Waters, Newsweek, 6 Oct. 1986
She attends biweekly classes and studies at the library every Saturday.
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
In terms of management, Phoenix will formally convene biweekly meetings for staff to review the heat programs throughout the heat season. Taylor Seely, The Arizona Republic, 4 Mar. 2024 The participants ranged in age from 1 to 55 years — about 40% were younger than 6 and most were younger than 18 — and 118 of them received a monthly or biweekly dose of Xolair. Kaitlin Sullivan, NBC News, 25 Feb. 2024 Haney’s new bill, AB 3073, would require biweekly testing of the state’s largest wastewater facilities for drugs, including fentanyl, cocaine, methamphetamine and xylazine, an increasingly deadly drug also called Tranq. Grace Toohey, Los Angeles Times, 27 Feb. 2024 How trash in Cincinnati works: Cincinnati offers weekly trash collection and biweekly recycling and yard waste collection. The Enquirer, 23 Feb. 2024 The biweekly paycheck is on the cusp of disruption, although expansion plans have hit a snag among skeptical financial regulators. Dylan Sloan, Fortune, 20 Feb. 2024 Once trained, barbers and stylists have a biweekly group training and forum. Kimanzi Constable, Parents, 11 Feb. 2024 While the man lived on his $250 biweekly funds, Berry transferred at least $9,000 of the man’s money out of his account, directing some of it into his own personal checking account, records show. Olivia Lloyd, Charlotte Observer, 8 Feb. 2024 If it’s meant to supplement your income, try to put yourself on a weekly or biweekly payment schedule instead of paying yourself right away, says Emanuel Rivero, senior director of counseling at the financial counseling nonprofit Money Management International. Rosalie Murphy Of Nerdwallet, Quartz, 8 Feb. 2024
Noun
The Post was founded as an English-language biweekly in 1992. Sopheng Cheang The Associated Press, arkansasonline.com, 3 Mar. 2024 Before World, a biweekly, was launched in 1986, religious periodicals were often cheaply mimeographed and filled with church news. Michael S. Rosenwald, New York Times, 14 Feb. 2024 For $18 a month, a driver will come to her home biweekly and collect her batteries, light bulbs, plastic mailers and even clothes. Carly Olson, Los Angeles Times, 15 Jan. 2024 Pay biweekly instead of monthly Another trick to pay off your student loan debt faster—and with minimal pain—is to make payments on a biweekly schedule, rather than a monthly one. Rebecca Safier, wsj.com, 2 Sep. 2023 Manicures Manicures and pedicures are a biweekly, or monthly, beauty ritual. India Espy-Jones, Essence, 22 Aug. 2023 Outside of flu season, once a week — or biweekly, depending on how frequently the toilet is used — should suffice. Zee Krstic, Good Housekeeping, 27 July 2023 This past offseason, for example, Hill organized biweekly Zoom calls with the pitching staff, tasking groups of coaches with assignments to complete before the next session. Jack Harris, Los Angeles Times, 23 July 2023 Airing biweekly on Thursdays on channel 93 beginning June 15 at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. Jennifer Maas, Variety, 9 June 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'biweekly.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

1832, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Noun

circa 1890, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of biweekly was in 1832

Dictionary Entries Near biweekly

Cite this Entry

“Biweekly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/biweekly. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

biweekly

1 of 2 adjective
bi·​week·​ly (ˈ)bī-ˈwē-klē How to pronounce biweekly (audio)
1
: occurring, done, or produced every two weeks
2
: occurring, done, or produced twice a week
biweekly adverb

biweekly

2 of 2 noun
: a biweekly publication

More from Merriam-Webster on biweekly

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