biannual

adjective bi·an·nu·al \(ˌ)bī-ˈan-yə(-wə)l\

: happening twice a year

: happening every two years

Full Definition of BIANNUAL

: occurring twice a year

: biennial 1

— bi·an·nu·al·ly adverb

See biannual defined for English-language learners

See biannual defined for kids

See Usage Discussion at bi-

Politicians still tremble when Barry begins his biannual comeback flirtations. … But if they'd spent less time looking over their shoulders and more time looking over election returns, they'd have seen that Barry was likely heading for a poleaxing when he called it quits. —Michael Schaffer, New Republic, 22 Apr. 2002
… have recommended routine annual or biannual mammographic screening for asymptomatic women without a personal or family history of breast cancer, starting at the age of 40. —Nels Marcus Thygeson, Journal of the American Medical Association, 8 July 1986
One of the more fascinating commonplace facts about the whitetail is its biannual change of color. Summer, when deer come “into the red,” as the saying goes, scant reddish-brown hairs replace the winter coat. Fall, deer come back “into the blue,” though less than blue, with a thick pelage of hollow, grayish-tan hairs … —John G. Mitchell, Smithsonian, November 1982
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