What does biweekly mean?
Biweekly describes something that happens either once every two weeks or, less commonly, twice a week — an ambiguity that has made it one of English's most famously confusing time-related words. It appears most often as an adjective modifying nouns like 'meeting', 'paycheck', 'column', or 'magazine', as in 'our biweekly staff sync'. As a noun, it denotes a publication issued on that schedule. The 'every two weeks' meaning predominates in contemporary American English, especially in workplace contexts such as payroll, where biweekly pay yields twenty-six paychecks a year rather than twelve or fifty-two. Because 'bi-' can be read as 'two' in different ways, style guides frequently recommend substituting clearer terms: 'fortnightly' for the two-week interval (chiefly British) or 'semiweekly' for twice a week. When precision matters — in contracts, schedules, or editorial calendars — stating the exact frequency outright avoids genuine misunderstanding.
Happening, appearing, or produced every two weeks, or occasionally twice a week.
"She writes a biweekly newsletter for her subscribers."
Specify the intended frequency when precision matters, since both readings are standard.
Once every two weeks, or twice a week.
"The committee meets biweekly during the legislative session."
A periodical, such as a magazine or newsletter, published every two weeks.
"That biweekly has covered local politics since the 1970s."
Used only for the noun sense referring to publications; several such periodicals are collectively called biweeklies.
"The newsstand carried several respected biweeklies alongside its daily papers."
Biweekly can mean both 'twice a week' and 'every two weeks' — which is why style guides beg you to pick fortnightly or semimonthly instead.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of biweekly
Biweekly combines 'bi-', a Latin-derived prefix meaning 'two' or 'twice', with 'weekly', from the Old English 'wice' or 'wicu', meaning a period of seven days. The prefix 'bi-' entered English through Latin borrowings and was applied productively to time intervals, producing pairs like biannual and biennial whose parallel ambiguities mirror biweekly's own. The word arose in the context of periodical publishing, where it described magazines and newspapers appearing at regular short intervals. Its Germanic root 'week' also survives in related formations such as weekday, weekend, and midweek, while the equivalent two-week interval is expressed in British English by 'fortnightly', built on the Old English 'fēowertīene niht', literally 'fourteen nights'.
How biweekly is actually used
Because 'bi-' can signal either 'every two' or 'twice per', biweekly is notoriously ambiguous; careful writers often replace it with 'fortnightly' (every two weeks) or 'semiweekly' (twice a week), and many organizations define their intended meaning explicitly. In everyday American usage the 'every two weeks' sense dominates, especially regarding pay cycles and meetings. The word is neutral in register, fitting both formal and informal contexts.
Easily confused with biweekly
Bimonthly means every two months (or twice a month), whereas biweekly refers to a two-week or twice-weekly interval.
Semiweekly unambiguously means twice a week, while biweekly most often means every two weeks.
Fortnightly means every two weeks only and carries no ambiguity; it is chiefly British.