semester

noun

se·​mes·​ter sə-ˈme-stər 

1

: either of the two usually 18-week periods of instruction into which an academic year is often divided

2

: a period of six months

semestral

sə-ˈme-strəl 

adjective

or semestrial

sə-ˈme-strē-əl 

Examples of semester in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

In the coming fall semester, this new reality will be undeniable. —Ian Bogost, The Atlantic, 17 Aug. 2025

What surprised her most were the comments from teachers facing even stricter limits — some who receive only a handful of copies for the entire semester, and others who spend their own money on printing or buy personal printers for their classrooms. —Jordan Greene, People.com, 14 Aug. 2025

Moran said that Bartlett High School took to the program for the second semester of last school year, but that it will now be used at the other three campuses, too. —Mike Danahey, Chicago Tribune, 10 Aug. 2025

At the end of the semester, Domokos asked him to concoct a simple algorithm to explore how tetrahedra balance. —Elise Cutts, Wired News, 10 Aug. 2025

Word History

Etymology

German, from Latin semestris half-yearly, from sex six + mensis month — more at six, moon

First Known Use

1827, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing semester

• semester hour

Rhymes for semester

• ancestor
• arrester
• digester
• investor
• protester
• requester
• sequester
• silvester
• trimester
• ester
• esther
• fester

Kids Definition

semester

noun

se·​mes·​ter sə-ˈmes-tər 

: either of two terms of about 18 weeks each that make up a school year