# What does "bi-weekly" mean to you? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 11, 2015, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-bi-weekly-mean-to-you/734380 "2015-10-11T23:50:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mangosteen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Mangosteen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangosteen)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2015, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-bi-weekly-mean-to-you/734380/1 "2015-10-11T23:50:28Z")
Twice a week. OR Every other week. OR It really doesn’t have any meaning because it could mean either of the two ideas above. ---
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2015, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-bi-weekly-mean-to-you/734380/2 "2015-10-11T23:52:46Z")
Since we have the word “fortnightly” to mean every two weeks, it makes sense for “biweekly” to mean twice a week. ---
**Author:** ![Hey\_Hey\_Paula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hey\_Hey\_Paula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hey_Hey_Paula)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2015, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-bi-weekly-mean-to-you/734380/3 "2015-10-11T23:54:44Z")
Bi-weekly = every two weeks. Semi-weekly = twice a week. ---
**Author:** ![OldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3bc359/32.png) [@OldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldGuy)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2015, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-bi-weekly-mean-to-you/734380/4 "2015-10-11T23:55:08Z")
Bi-weekly means every two weeks to me. Semi-weekly would be twice a week. I suspect there would be some disagreement about the former but not the latter. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2015, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-bi-weekly-mean-to-you/734380/5 "2015-10-11T23:57:27Z")
> [@Giles](#): > > Since we have the word “fortnightly” to mean every two weeks, it makes sense for “biweekly” to mean twice a week. In America, we don’t use “fortnight.” Biweekly means every two weeks much more often than it means twice a week. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2015, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-bi-weekly-mean-to-you/734380/6 "2015-10-12T00:12:45Z")
> [@Johnny\_Bravo](#): > > In America, we don’t use “fortnight.” We do in _my_ America. Granted, people look at me funny when I use it, but I’m used to that. Biweekly = twice a week. Fortnightly = once a fortnight. ---
**Author:** ![Abner\_Ravenwood](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c4cdca/32.png) [@Abner\_Ravenwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Abner_Ravenwood)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2015, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-bi-weekly-mean-to-you/734380/7 "2015-10-12T00:38:42Z")
Nowadays it means both, just like with biannual. On a related note, whenever someone uses “peruse,” I have to ask him/her what he/she wants to convey since now it can mean to read carefully or to skim. Of course, it meant to read carefully when I learned the word in 9th grade English. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2015, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-bi-weekly-mean-to-you/734380/8 "2015-10-12T00:53:44Z")
I read “biweekly” as every-other week. I read “bimonthly” as twice a month. I think both are ambiguous, but I have a lot more stuff that happens about twice a month than that happens every other month or twice a week. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![black\_rabbit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/f19dbf/32.png) [@black\_rabbit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/black_rabbit)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2015, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-bi-weekly-mean-to-you/734380/9 "2015-10-12T01:07:25Z")
I used to work in a job that required a lot of discussion about the frequency of people’s paychecks. It infuriated me when my coworkers would use “bi-weekly” to refer to “every two weeks,” and “bi-monthly” to refer to “twice a month.” I got the stink eye more than once in training for asking the trainer: “Do you mean \*semi-\*monthly?” ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2015, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-bi-weekly-mean-to-you/734380/10 "2015-10-12T01:10:04Z")
Every two weeks. ‘Twice a week’ is an abomination against everything that even vaguely resembles logic. ---
**Author:** ![Abner\_Ravenwood](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c4cdca/32.png) [@Abner\_Ravenwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Abner_Ravenwood)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2015, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-bi-weekly-mean-to-you/734380/11 "2015-10-12T01:11:41Z")
> [@black\_rabbit](#): > > I used to work in a job that required a lot of discussion about the frequency of people’s paychecks. > > It infuriated me when my coworkers would use “bi-weekly” to refer to “every two weeks,” and “bi-monthly” to refer to “twice a month.” I got the stink eye more than once in training for asking the trainer: “Do you mean \*semi-\*monthly?” So basically, they were synonyms. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2015, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-bi-weekly-mean-to-you/734380/12 "2015-10-12T01:32:15Z")
> [@Ethilrist](#): > > We do in _my_ America. > > Granted, people look at me funny when I use it, but I’m used to that. So in your America only a few random people say “fortnight,” and they get funny looks when they do? I think we live in the same America. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2015, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-bi-weekly-mean-to-you/734380/13 "2015-10-12T01:44:39Z")
> [@Abner\_Ravenwood](#): > > So basically, they were synonyms. no, some years you get an extra paycheck if your pay is bi-weekly, but you always get 26 paychecks if you are paid bimonthly. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_T-Cups](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ed655f/32.png) [@Sir\_T-Cups](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_T-Cups)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2015, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-bi-weekly-mean-to-you/734380/14 "2015-10-12T01:49:14Z")
It’s funny this thread is made because I actually had this thought earlier today because bi-weekly, to me, means twice a week. Bi-monthly is twice a month…and so on. But when I said it at my last job they scolded me for improper use. But I still want to use it that way. ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2015, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-bi-weekly-mean-to-you/734380/15 "2015-10-12T01:59:37Z")
> [@Mangosteen](#): > > Twice a week. OR > > Every other week. OR > > It really doesn’t have any meaning because it could mean either of the two ideas above. No, it can’t. No more than “bisexual” means you like having sex with men only, but twice as much. > [@Hey\_Hey\_Paula](#): > > Bi-weekly = every two weeks. Semi-weekly = twice a week. This is the correct answer. The only correct answer. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2015, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-bi-weekly-mean-to-you/734380/16 "2015-10-12T02:05:59Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > no, some years you get an extra paycheck if your pay is bi-weekly, but you always get 26 paychecks if you are paid bimonthly. 😉 … your calendar has 13 months? ---
**Author:** ![bengangmo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@bengangmo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bengangmo)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2015, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-bi-weekly-mean-to-you/734380/17 "2015-10-12T02:23:26Z")
Going by the dictionary meaning I learnt - Bi-Weekly would mean every two weeks. Same as “biannual” means every second year. But I would never use it - simply because too many people will get it wrong. Would prefer “fortnightly” (yes it is common here) or “every second week”. If I am using it to refer to years (I am in the exhibition industry, where trade fairs are commonly held biannually) I would use a construction like “alternate years” or “every other year” The other one where you have to be careful - What is the difference between “feet squared” and “square feet”? Would I be right to say that 100 feet squared is 100 feet on each edge (i.e 10,000 square feet) while 100 square feet is actually 10’ x 10’ ? ---
**Author:** ![simster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/simster/32/1047_2.png) [@simster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/simster)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2015, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-bi-weekly-mean-to-you/734380/18 "2015-10-12T02:24:34Z")
weekly - every week bi-weekly - every other week bi-monthly - twice a month (1st and 15th ish) Annually - once a year Semi-annually - twice a year bi -annually - every two years. Its all very confusing. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2015, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-bi-weekly-mean-to-you/734380/19 "2015-10-12T02:38:52Z")
> [@Ethilrist](#): > > … your calendar has 13 months? lol, no, I just messed up. If you get paid every two weeks, you get either 26 or 27 paychecks, depending on the year. So there are a few months when you get an “extra” paycheck. If you get paid twice a month, you get paid 24 times every year. Because most large bills come once a month, many employees prefer being paid every-other week, because it’s sort of an easy way to “save up” a paycheck. ---
**Author:** ![Ponch8](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponch8/32/9883_2.png) [@Ponch8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponch8)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2015, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-bi-weekly-mean-to-you/734380/20 "2015-10-12T02:40:47Z")
Every two weeks. End of discussion. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-bi-weekly-mean-to-you/734380.md?page=2)