Reference > Usage > American Heritage® Book of English Usage > 3. Word Choice > § 48. bimonthly / biweekly / semimonthly / semiweekly
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The American Heritage® Book of English Usage.
A Practical and Authoritative Guide to Contemporary English.  1996.

3. Word Choice: New Uses, Common Confusion, and Constraints

§ 48. bimonthly / biweekly / semimonthly / semiweekly


If your therapy group has semimonthly meetings, how often should you expect to show up? A bimonthly meeting should take place “once every two months"; a biweekly, “once every two weeks.” A semimonthly meeting should be held “twice a month” and a semiweekly “twice a week.” That’s should. These words are often confused, and to spare nervous attendees the suspense, the only decent thing to do is to use substitute expressions like every two months or twice a month.    1
  In the publishing world, where confusion is a rarity, a bimonthly always comes out every two months, and a biweekly every two weeks.    2


The American Heritage® Book of English Usage. Copyright © 1996 by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
 
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