quarterly

American  

[kwawr-ter-lee] / ˈkwɔr tər li /

adjective

1. occurring, done, paid, issued, etc., at the end of every quarter of a year.

   a quarterly report; quarterly interest.

2. pertaining to or consisting of a quarter.

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noun

• quarterlies
  plural

1. a periodical issued every three months.

adverb

1. by quarters; once each quarter of a year.

   The bank pays interest quarterly.

2. Heraldry.

   1. with division into four quarters.

   2. in the four quarters of an escutcheon.

quarterly British  

/ ˈkwɔːtəlɪ /

adjective

1. occurring, done, paid, etc, at intervals of three months

2. of, relating to, or consisting of a quarter

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noun

1. a periodical issued every three months

adverb

1. once every three months

2. heraldry into or in quarters

   a shield divided quarterly

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• quarterlies
  plural

Etymology

Origin of quarterly

late Middle English word dating back to 1400–50; see origin at quarter, -ly

Explanation

Something that happens quarterly occurs four times per year, like your family's quarterly visit to your grandparents' house in Florida. Magazines that are published every three months come out quarterly — in fact, they're commonly referred to as quarterlies. For businesses, many things happen on a quarterly schedule, from the quarterly taxes they pay to quarterly reports sent to shareholders. Think of a year as consisting of four quarters; anything occurring once per quarter happens quarterly. The Latin root, quartus, means "the fourth."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

quarterly quarterlies

JPMorgan analysts project Valero could print $8.95 billion in pretax earnings in the third quarter, up 50% from the prior three-month period and 24% higher than its quarterly record in mid-2022.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026

Big banks will kick off quarterly earnings on Tuesday, even though the stock market will operate with normal hours on Monday.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 9, 2026

In its latest quarterly filing, the company said it expects capital expenditures to exceed $25 billion in 2026.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 8, 2026

That would mark the first time a South Korean company has surpassed 100 trillion won in quarterly operating profit.

From Barron's ● Oct. 8, 2026

Burry followed this letter with his quarterly report, which he hoped might make everyone feel a bit better.

From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis

His demanding prose style was forged in an era when small-circulation quarterlies still had some cachet.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 14, 2023

The essays, strong and strange, were published in quarterlies of literature and philosophy, and few people read them.

From The New Yorker ● Jan. 2, 2019

As for what it all means, I suppose we’ll have to wait for the foreign policy thinktanks and cryogenics quarterlies to report.

From The Guardian ● Apr. 1, 2016

“I sent my stuff out to the quarterlies and it came back with arrogant notes,” she added.

From New York Times ● Feb. 13, 2014

I would send my poems out, to literary quarterlies or magazines, and wait for their return.

From "Bad Boy" by Walter Dean Myers

Related Words

• periodically