Definition of BIPARTISAN

Other Words from bipartisan

bipartisanism \(ˌ)bī-ˈpär-tə-zə-ˌni-zəm,

-sə- \ noun

bipartisanship \(ˌ)bī-ˈpär-tə-zən-ˌship,

-sən- \ noun

Did You Know?

Bipartisan is a two-part word. The first element is the prefix bi-, which means "two"; the second is partisan, a word that traces through Middle French and north Italian dialect to the Latin part- or pars, meaning "part." Partisan itself has a long history as a word in English. It has been used as a noun in reference to a firm adherent to a party, faction, or cause (especially one exhibiting blind, prejudiced, and unreasoning allegiance), since the 16th century. The related adjective (meaning "of, relating to, or characteristic of a partisan") appeared in the 19th century, as did, after a space of some 50 years, the adjective bipartisan.

Examples of bipartisan in a Sentence

In his first Inaugural Address, Jefferson sounded a conciliatory, bipartisan note, averring that "we are all Republicans, we are all Federalists"—a trope copied in many inaugural addresses to follow. — Sean Wilentz, Newsweek, 27 Jan. 2009 Seasoned observers of Washington tend to dismiss such talk of national unity and bipartisan cooperation as meaningless political boilerplate … — Larissa MacFarquhar, New Yorker, 7 May 2007 Two recent national bipartisan blue-ribbon panels, the National Research Council Committee on Preventing Reading Difficulties in Young Children and the National Reading Panel, came to converging conclusions. — Bennet A. Shawitz, New Republic, 6 Nov. 2000 The bill has bipartisan support.

Recent Examples on the Web

But even if funding doesn't end up on the table by the midterms, there are some bright spots emerging on bipartisan efforts on election security in Congress. — Derek Hawkins, Washington Post, "The Cybersecurity 202: House Democrats list states with weakest election security in new report," 13 July 2018 Nelson also credited the bipartisan effort of the Florida congressional delegation, whose members have worked together to get spending bills passed to fund smaller segments of the project. — David Smiley And Mary Ellen Klas, miamiherald, "Florida’s politicians use slimy algae to muddy each other," 11 July 2018 In that position, Wheeler fought air pollution regulations and opposed efforts to address climate change, helping stymie some of the early bipartisan efforts to deal with the issue. — Justin Worland, Time, "Scott Pruitt's EPA Resignation Is a Win for Environmental Groups. But It's Complicated," 5 July 2018 In Congress, the reactor has bipartisan support, especially from the House science committee, where Representatives Randy Weber (R–TX) and Eddie Bernice Johnson (D–TX) both sponsored the House bill. — Adrian Cho, Science | AAAS, "Congress pushes for multibillion-dollar nuclear reactor that critics call a boondoggle," 3 July 2018 McCain has long supported bipartisan immigration reform efforts that include a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants who have settled in the United States, border security upgrades, and a foreign worker program. — Yvonne Wingett Sanchez, azcentral, "McCain urges Trump to withdraw nominee for refugee post for 'lack of empathy'," 19 June 2018 Murkowski, a Republican who chairs the Interior and Environment subcommittee, credited the move as a bipartisan effort that was only possible with agreement from Democrats on the committee. — Erica Martinson, Anchorage Daily News, "Murkowski’s Interior appropriations bill makes bipartisan headway in the Senate," 15 June 2018 There's a real bipartisan effort underway to do something about the criminal justice aspect of this and his son-in-law Jared Kushner is supposed to be playing a big role in it. — Z. Byron Wolf, CNN, "Trump says NFL players protesting racial injustice don't have 'a real issue'," 15 June 2018 The newscaster’s voice says both Democrats praised the bipartisan effort. — Michael Dresser, baltimoresun.com, "Gov. Larry Hogan's health care ad paints D.C. as problem, bipartisanship (and himself) as the cure," 8 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'bipartisan.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.