Semiannual vs. Biannual – How to Use Each Correctly

/ September 24, 2017/ Usage

What’s the Difference Between Semiannual and Biannual?

Biannual and semiannual are synonyms, which means that they have the same definition. Although some synonyms are similar with slight differences in implied meaning or usage, these two words are nearly interchangeable.

Biannual is an adjective that means happening twice each year.

• She usually competes in the biannual flower-arranging contest. She won the spring contest last year but lost the fall contest.

Semiannual also is an adjective that means occurring twice a year.

• The town pig races are so popular that they made it a semiannual event.

Now, let’s go over a few ways to use these words correctly.

Using Biannual in a Sentence

When to use biannual: Biannual is an adjective that describes anything that happens twice in a year, often a public event or a publication.

For example,

• This literary magazine is a biannual publication. The magazine comes out once in the summer and winter of each year.
• My family loves each other so much that they aren’t content with annual family reunions. Rather, they have biannual reunions.

Bi is a prefix with its origin in the Latin language. It can mean twice each or every two. For that reason, many people confuse biannual with biennial. Biennial means once every two years.

Using Semiannual in a Sentence

When to use semiannual: Semiannual has the same meaning as biannual, occurring every six months, or in other words happening twice each year.

For example,

• All employees are invited to our company’s semiannual BBQ. Please feel free to bring a dish to share.
• Most elementary schools in the community have a semiannual fundraiser to help raise money for school clubs and programs.

Technically there is a slight difference in meaning. Biannual simply meaning twice a year. Semiannual means every six months since the prefix ­semi means every half year. This, however, is such a small distinction that it is widely accepted to use these terms interchangeably.

Also, you may see this word with a hyphen, semi-annual, or written as two words with a space between each, semi annual. Both of these are merely common errors and should be avoided.

Remembering Biannual vs. Semiannual

Because these two words are synonyms, there is no need to remember anything to distinguish the two. However, there is one cautionary note you should be aware of.

Biannual is very close in pronunciation and spelling to the word biennial. Because these two words have different definitions, biannual can be more confusing to readers than semiannual. For this reason, many writers prefer to use semiannual over biannual.

To remember to use no hyphen and no space in semiannual, just remember that semi is a prefix, and therefore should not be separate from the base word. Also, hyphens between a prefix are only necessary in several situations:

• between a prefix and proper nouns: un-American
• when describing a great familial relation: great-grandmother
• when the prefix ending and root word beginning have the same letter: re-elect
• when the prefix is self, ex, or all: ex-boyfriend
• for the sake of clarity: she re-dressed herself

Semiannual does not fit any of these rules, so a hyphen is not necessary.

Outside Examples

• Yvon Chouinard, the founder of the outdoor-gear company Patagonia, is arguably the godfather of his industry. So when Mr. Chouinard called for a boycott of the biannual Outdoor Retailer trade shows in Salt Lake City, his peers paid attention. –Wall Street Journal
• The group takes nominations through its website for hall of fame members for about a year before each biannual induction ceremony. –Denver Post
• “I think we should be fighting like hell to make sure that we make voting more accessible to more Americans,” Brown said in an interview with the Post earlier this year, after she appeared at the semiannual Democracy Alliance donor conference. “We’re literally using the data from the DMV and handing it to the secretary of state’s office to register voters.” –The Washington Post
• The rush of geologists and drilling rigs into the world’s hottest oil play will make it far more difficult and costly to invest in oil fields in West Texas, a region investors and executives still believe could provide huge returns to wildcatters, oil industry professionals said at this summer’s NAPE, a semiannual gathering of energy deal-makers at the George R. Brown Convention Center in downtown Houston. –Houston Chronicle

Quiz: Semiannual vs. Biannual

Instructions: Fill in the blanks with the correct word, either semiannual or biannual, in the correct form.

• Our school will hold ________________ elections for student council.
• Race around the Square is a ____________________ event to raise money for the neighborhood.
• Although our family members live far apart, we try to have a ___________ family cookout so we get to see each other at least twice a year.

See answers below.

Article Summary

Should I use biannual or semiannual? These words are synonyms, so use whichever one you prefer.

• Biannual is an adjective that means twice a year. If you use this one, make sure your readers don’t confuse it with biennial.
• Semiannual is also an adjective that means twice a year. If you use this one, make sure you don’t accidentally add a hyphen or space between the prefix and root word.

Both words have pros and cons, so consider each when choosing which word you would like to use.

Answers

• biannual or semiannual (either is correct)
• biannual or semiannual (either is correct)
• biannual or semiannual (either is correct)