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Joined: Apr 2005
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stranger
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stranger
Joined: Apr 2005
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My boyfriend and I are discussing the words preceded by "bi" such as "bi-weekly" and "bi-monthly." He wholeheartedly contends that they mean "twice a week" and "twice a month" instead of "every two weeks" etc.
Does anyone know where we got this concoction of words and why they mean what we believe them to mean?
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Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 1,773
Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 1,773 |
The prefix bi derives from the latin bis, meaning "twice." Terms such as bimonthly, meaning once every two months, and biweekly, meaning every two weeks, are so defined in the dictionary, but suggest dual meanings. The secondary definition of bimonthly is, and is designated as loosely used in my dictionary, twice a month. In speaking of occurrences cycled in weeks or parts of weeks, I prefer "semiweekly" and the British term "fortnightly" for clarity of meaning. I wonder if there is something similar to use when referring to bimonthly events? I started to say, "...when referring to monthly cycles", but that's a whole 'nother subject.
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Joined: Mar 2005
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addict
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addict
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 500 |
Sparteye, I would construe "semi-weekly" to mean at half-week intervals, or something. And then I'd be thinking "or maybe it's every other week...damn!" Fortnightly is much clearer (and it's a great word, too!)
Biennial plants flower in their second year, not twice a year. We had a bi-weekly mortgage payment for a while, which meant one every other week.
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 3,467 |
I looked in onelook.com, and the first three dictionaries I checked all said that biweekly means both twice a week and every two weeks. Nimonthly has a similar dichotomy of meaning. So I checked the OED, which says that the confusion might be avoided by using the prefix semi.
But nowhere do I get a clue as to why the double usage.
Hey, it's English!
Welcome aboard, Blondegirl. May we call you BG for short?
TEd
TEd
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Joined: Mar 2001
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Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 2,379 |
I looked in onelook.com, and the first three dictionaries <<I checked all said that biweekly means both twice a week and every two weeks. Nimonthly has a similar dichotomy of meaning. So I checked the OED, which says that the confusion might be avoided by using the prefix semi.>>
Teach it to the foxglove, and my heart will race in summer and in winter both.
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Joined: Sep 2000
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newbie
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newbie
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There has to be a digitalis post suitable for the Wendy's thread.
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Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 3,467
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 3,467 |
TEd
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Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 2,379
Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 2,379 |
<<suitable for Wendy's>>
Fleurs du Malarchie?
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old hand
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old hand
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Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 1,773 |
Sparteye, I would construe "semi-weekly" to mean at half-week intervals, or something.
As would I, and the writers of the American Heritage and Random House dictionaries. I offer "semiweekly" and "fortnightly" as complements, not synonyms.
I suspect that the confused use of the "bi" terms comes from people variously understanding the "bi" part to be "twice" (it happens twice in the designated period) or "two" (it happens every two of the designated period). The former are more on target with original meaning, but the latter are sufficiently numerous that the dual meanings have been established.
As to "biennial", I've always readily distinguished the meaning from "biannual", and I'm wishing I was near my etymological dictionaries right now, so I could chase down the history of the distinction between "annual" and "ennial", since my AHD is only telling me that "ennial" derives from L "annus", which gets us nowhere in the end.
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Joined: Jun 2002
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 7,210 |
> "ennial" derives from L "annus", which gets us nowhere in the end.
bada-bing!
formerly known as etaoin...
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Joined: Sep 2000
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Sep 2000
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> annus [...] end
lol! /rimshot
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Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 7,210
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 7,210 |
I wear the mantle proudly. /rimshot 
formerly known as etaoin...
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Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 4,757
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 4,757 |
no mantle intended, eta, I was just concurring in the laff!
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2000
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 10,542 |
here's a combo that *was a google-whack before Some WordGuy came along and mucked it up: death-declining sottage.
-joe (death-declining??) friday
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