fortnight

American  

[fawrt-nahyt, -nit] / ˈfɔrtˌnaɪt, -nɪt /

noun

• fortnights
  plural

1. the space of fourteen nights and days; two weeks.

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fortnight British  

/ ˈfɔːtˌnaɪt /

noun

1. a period of 14 consecutive days; two weeks

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• fortnights
  plural

Etymology

Origin of fortnight

First recorded before 1000; Middle English fourtenight, contraction of Old English fēowertēne niht; see fourteen, night

Explanation

A fortnight is fourteen nights, or two weeks. This word isn't used much in American English, but you'll come across it if you travel to England — or read a lot of old British novels. The word fortnight is still in use in Great Britain and some former British colonies. It comes from the Old English, and is literally a shortened form of fourteen nights. People sometimes use it when they're discussing their vacations or their pay schedules. In the United States, however, people typically just say "two weeks."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

fortnight fortnights

Fast forward a fortnight amid some very rapid and painful deleveraging, and the index now stands at 6813 after a stealth rally of 21%.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 13, 2026

A decision on Ndukwe's next steps is expected within the next fortnight.

From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2026

Over the last fortnight, reports of AI models going beyond their expected bounds - be that technically or morally - have been seemingly unavoidable.

From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026

The number of migrants who have arrived in the UK on small boats since Burnham became PM a fortnight ago surpassed 2,000 after 326 people crossed the English Channel on Saturday.

From BBC ● Aug. 2, 2026

A fortnight in sailor pants had made her accustomed to having pockets, and she saw no need to give them up.

From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood

Shefte: Indeed, the first two fortnights are dark and full of terrors.

From Seattle Times ● Sep. 27, 2023

WIMBLEDON, England — For all the days and fortnights and years of the early 2010s, the horizon didn’t seem to hold in store the kind of impressionist painting of the Thursday that Venus Williams just had.

From Washington Post ● Jul. 13, 2017

I’ll get used to it, probably in the next few fortnights or so.

From Slate ● Aug. 1, 2016

“Eleven-day fortnights, 16-hour days, pages and pages of dialogue.”

From The Guardian ● Apr. 23, 2016

Here for eight months and there for three The son of Raghu's stay would be: Here weeks, there fortnights, more or less, He spent in tranquil happiness.

From The Rámáyan of Válmíki, translated into English verse by Ralph T. H. (Ralph Thomas Hotchkin) Griffith