Definition of BIPARTISAN

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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 Although the Senate Intelligence Committee has been to work on a more bipartisan basis than other congressional committees, Democrats and Republicans are sharply divided over Ratcliffe's nomination. — Grace Segers, CBS News, "Senate Intelligence Committee advances Ratcliffe nomination as intel chief," 19 May 2020 Whitmer, who has urged a bipartisan approach to the health crisis, has been mentioned as a possible running mate for presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden. — Phoebe Wall Howard, Detroit Free Press, "President Trump to visit Ford plant making PPE in Ypsilanti on Thursday," 18 May 2020 Rural Texas transit agencies are set to receive some $75 million in infrastructure funding from the bipartisan CARES Act, part of which will help 12 area counties meet the transportation needs of seniors and the disabled. — Bruce Selcraig, ExpressNews.com, "Federal stimulus funds will help rural bus program in counties outside San Antonio," 18 May 2020 Despite bipartisan frustrations with the virus's effect on the legislative process, the changes, which include temporarily authorizing remote committee work and proxy voting on the House floor, appear likely to be adopted along party lines. — Mike Debonis, Anchorage Daily News, "US House adopts historic changes allowing remote voting during pandemic," 16 May 2020 The first four coronavirus response bills were bipartisan measures that passed by sweeping votes, but Friday's measure — with a $3 trillion-plus price tag that exceeds the prior bills combined — promises to pass largely along party lines. — Andrew Taylor And Alan Fram, Houston Chronicle, "House to vote Friday on more virus aid, despite GOP skeptics," 15 May 2020 Every member of the agency’s bipartisan governing board is a Trump appointee. — Josh Dawsey, BostonGlobe.com, "Postal Services launches review of package delivery fees as Trump influence grows," 14 May 2020 This atmosphere stifled what could have been a genuinely bipartisan accomplishment. — Franklin Foer, The Atlantic, "The 2016 Election Was Just a Dry Run," 11 May 2020 Harvard's Safra Center for Ethics, along with a group of bipartisan public health and economics experts, released a roadmap that calls for 20 million tests a day by mid-July to fully remobilize the economy. — Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, "It can still be hard to get a coronavirus test -- and that's not the only problem," 10 May 2020

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.