Biennium
noun ·Rare ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 A period of two years, particularly for purposes involving intercalation or fiscal calculations.
"The Greeks being taught by their Oracles, that their accuſtomed Sacrifices were to be offered κατά τρία, which they underſtood as if their Year were to be regulated by the Sun, and their Days and Months were to be adjuſted by the motion of the Moon; were always ſolicitous, how by certain Periods they might reduce the diſagreeing motions of the Luminaries to a Third ſomething in which they might agree: Hence in the ancient times they are ſaid to have uſed a Biennium, intercalating every other year: But fault was found with this, and 'twas ſucceeded by a Quadriennium; upon the return of which the Olympic Games were celebrated."
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
More examples"The Greeks being taught by their Oracles, that their accuſtomed Sacrifices were to be offered κατά τρία, which they underſtood as if their Year were to be regulated by the Sun, and their Days and Months were to be adjuſted by the motion of the Moon; were always ſolicitous, how by certain Periods they might reduce the diſagreeing motions of the Luminaries to a Third ſomething in which they might agree: Hence in the ancient times they are ſaid to have uſed a Biennium, intercalating every other year: But fault was found with this, and 'twas ſucceeded by a Quadriennium; upon the return of which the Olympic Games were celebrated."
Etymology
From Latin biennium, from biennis (“2-year”) + -ium (suffix forming abstract nouns), from bi- (“two”) + annus (“year”), q.v.
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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.