fortnight

American  

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

noun

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

---

fortnight British  

/ ˈfɔːtˌnaɪt /

noun

1. a period of 14 consecutive days; two weeks

---

Etymology

Origin of fortnight

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

Example Sentences

The incident comes less than a fortnight after a person died in the south-eastern Var region following a collision between a regional train and a truck.

From BBC • Apr. 7, 2026

Her Easter sermon comes just shy of a fortnight after her installation as the first female Archbishop of Canterbury, during which she said her teenage self could "never have imagined the future that lay ahead".

From BBC • Apr. 4, 2026

I began to experience all 11 of my first-team starters going off to represent their countries for up to a fortnight, so I had to change my way of working while they were away.

From BBC • Mar. 27, 2026

Perhaps the quirkiest fortnight in football peaked for Roberto Martinez's side when Ben Watson flicked a 91st-minute header beyond Manchester City stopper Joe Hart to send Wigan fans wild at Wembley.

From BBC • Mar. 13, 2026

Arya did not know who Bloody Mummers were until a fortnight later, when the queerest company of men she'd ever seen arrived at Harrenhal.

From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin