quadrennial
Americanadjective
-
occurring every four years.
a quadrennial festival.
-
of or lasting for four years.
a quadrennial period.
noun
adjective
-
occurring every four years
-
relating to or lasting four years
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of quadrennial
1640–50; earlier quadriennial < Latin quadrienni ( um ) ( see quadrennium) + -al 1
Explanation
The U.S. presidential election is a quadrennial event, something that happens every four years. And because the word also means "lasting four years," you can say that the newly-elected President will serve a quadrennial term. While the "happening every four years" meaning is more common, you can use the word quadrennial in both ways. You might describe your high school years, ninth to twelfth grade, as a quadrennial, while also referring to your favorite quadrennial sporting event, Olympic figure skating. This word is from the Latin quadri-, "four," and -ennial, from annus, "year."
Vocabulary lists containing quadrennial
ann, enn
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quad, quar (four)
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quadr
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
But when an analyst asked whether the quadrennial event would have a Swift-level impact on business, executives said it wouldn’t.
From MarketWatch • May 14, 2026
Shiffrin’s quadrennial struggles—and the What’s up with Mikaela? media cauldrons they’ve inspired—have confounded her as much as anyone.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 3, 2026
Four years ago, England were put through their quadrennial humiliation.
From BBC • Nov. 20, 2025
With the passage of the Presidential Protection Act of 2000, and 9/11 the quadrennial gatherings have increasingly become paramilitary affairs.
From Salon • Jul. 22, 2024
The place which once knew him in those quadrennial gatherings of the Warwicks of the party will soon know him there no more forever.
From The Ballotless Victim of One-Party Governments The American Negro Academy, Occasional Papers No. 16 by Grimké, Archibald Henry
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
