What does "biannual" mean?

Question

Does "Biannual" mean every two years? Or does it mean twice every year? Because I looked it up on Dictionary. com and it says every two years.

Answer 1

Biannual means occurring twice a year and
semiannual means “half-yearly" or twice a year . (Confusing eh?)

Biennial means “every two years".

Update: dictionary.com says twice a year... it continues with the definition with every two years: Biennial. In Britain, it seems, it might mean both... but in the U.S. biannual means twice a year.

Answer 2

Biannual Definition

Answer 3

Hello,
Yes, 'biannual' means twice a year. It is biennial (note the spelling is ONE letter different!!!) that means every two years. You can also use the term "semi-annual" for twice a year.
Now I was ready to tell you different and then I looked it up in this source: http://www.bartleby.com/68/34/834.html. This is always a great source for many language questions: www.bartleby.com --I was using the 'usage' section for this question.

You see I am a librarian and that is one of the great things about my job--I can always learn (or RE-learn) something every day.

Take care. Answered by a librarian from California.

Answer 4

Biannual SHOULD mean twice a year. Every two years is "biennial". But my dictionaries say biannual MIGHT also mean every two years. Probably everybody is so confused about the two similar words that they don't know what biannual means. I don't blame them

Answer 5

Biannual (with an A) or semiannual:
is something that happens twice a year.

Biennial (with an E):
is something that happens once every two years.

Answer 6

bi-annual [baiˈӕnjuəl] adjective

happening twice a year
Example: a bi-annual event;

bi·an·nu·al (bī-ān'yōō-əl)
adj.
Happening twice each year; semiannual.
Occurring every two years; biennial.

bi·en·ni·al /baɪˈɛniəl/ [bahy-en-ee-uhl]
–adjective

1. happening every two years: biennial games.
2. lasting or enduring for two years: a biennial life cycle.
3. Botany. completing its normal term of life in two years, flowering and fruiting the second year, as beets or winter wheat.
–noun 4. any event occurring once in two years.
5. Botany. a biennial plant.

hope this helps.

Answer 7

Once every 2 years.

Answer 8

It means occurring twice each year OR occurring once every two years.

Answer 9

Once every two years.

Semi-annual means twice or a year (or, more literally, once every half year).

Answer 10

Every two years. for another example, a biathlete at the olympics is doing two sports.