bicameral

American  

[bahy-kam-er-uhl] / baɪˈkæm ər əl /

adjective

Government.

1. having two branches, chambers, or houses, as a legislative body.

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bicameral British  

/ baɪˈkæmərəl /

adjective

1. (of a legislature) consisting of two chambers

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Other Word Forms

• bicameralism noun
• bicameralist noun

Etymology

Origin of bicameral

First recorded in 1825–35; bi- ¹ + Latin camer(a) “vault, arched roof” + -al ¹. See chamber

Compare meaning

How does bicameral compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• unicameral vs. bicameral

Example Sentences

The bipartisan, bicameral Congressional-Executive Commission on China, where we serve as chair and ranking member, has worked to expose this threat.

From The Wall Street Journal

These include expanding parliament into a bicameral system, with a new 100‑seat upper house allocated according to each party's share of the national vote.

From Barron's

“I urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan, bicameral and utterly fantastic bill,” said Representative Lloyd K. Smucker, Republican of Pennsylvania.

From New York Times

Each has its own government, parliament and police, but the two are linked by shared, state-wide institutions, including the three-person presidency and the bicameral national parliament.

From Seattle Times

Thailand's bicameral parliament has been deadlocked for weeks on the formation of a new government after a May 14 election dominated by two former opposition parties, winners Move Forward and second placed Pheu Thai.

From Reuters