quadrennium

American  

[kwo-dren-ee-uhm] / kwɒˈdrɛn i əm /

noun

quadrenniums, plural quadrennia plural

1. a period of four years.

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quadrennium British  

/ kwɒˈdrɛnɪəm /

noun

1. a period of four years

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• quadrennia
  plural
• quadrenniums
  plural

Etymology

Origin of quadrennium

1815–25; < New Latin, alteration of Latin quadriennium, equivalent to quadri- quadri- + -enn-, combining form of annus year ( cf. annual) + -ium -ium

Explanation

High school and college both last for a quadrennium. That's four years' time, even if, to some, it feels more like a millenium, i.e., a thousand. Quadrennium is one of the words that specifically names a period of years––an annum is one year, a decade ten, a century a hundred, and a millennium a thousand. Quad- refers to the number four. In college campus architecture, a quad is a lawn surrounded by ivy-covered brick buildings on four sides.

Example Sentences

At the halfway mark of the Olympic quadrennium, the USA Track & Field event serves as an important checkpoint for the sport’s hope to break out of the four-year popularity cycle.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 13, 2026

While Memmel said leadership during the quadrennium between the 2016 and 2020 Olympics made athletes aware of how the code was changing, those changes weren’t necessarily implemented into the routines.

From Seattle Times • Jun. 13, 2022

The veteran competing at her third Games climbed onto the podium next to a 31-year-old who until this quadrennium had played only indoor volleyball.

From Washington Post • Aug. 6, 2021

“The problem was Martha and Bela had retired and we didn’t have anybody pushing us,” he said of the 1997–2000 quadrennium.

From Slate • Aug. 5, 2016

For another quadrennium his hand was on the party throttle.

From The Reign of Andrew Jackson by Ogg, Frederic Austin