semiyearly

American  

[sem-ee-yeer-lee, sem-ahy-] / ˌsɛm iˈyɪər li, ˌsɛm aɪ- /

adjective

1. semiannual.

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adverb

1. twice a year; semiannually.

   He seeded the lawn semiyearly.

semiyearly British  

/ ˌsɛmɪˈjɪəlɪ /

adjective

1. another word for semiannual

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Usage

What does semiyearly mean? Semiyearly means twice a year (or, technically, once every half a year). It can be used this way as an adjective, as in a semiyearly meeting, or an adverb, as in We plan to meet semiyearly. The adjective semiannual means the same thing as semiyearly (if semiyearly is used as an adverb, its equivalent is semiannually). The words biannual and biyearly can be synonyms of semiyearly, but they can also mean once every two years (every other year). Although semiyearly is only used to mean twice a year—not every two years—it can still be confusing. The best (and maybe only) way to be perfectly clear is to just say “twice a year.”Example: The dentist recommends a checkup every six months, so I guess I have to make my semiyearly appointment.

Commonly Confused

See bi- ¹.

Etymology

Origin of semiyearly

First recorded in 1925–30; semi- + yearly

Related Words

• biannual