SINCE 1828

An Encyclopædia Britannica Company

1

fortnightly

play

adjective fort·night·ly \ˈfȯrt-ˌnīt-lē\

Definition of fortnightly

: occurring or appearing once in a fortnight

See fortnightly defined for English-language learners

First Known Use of fortnightly

1800

Other Calendar Terms

antedate, estival, gloaming, luster, sesquicentennial

2

fortnightly

adverb fort·night·ly

Definition of fortnightly

: once in a fortnight : every fortnight

First Known Use of fortnightly

1820

Other Calendar Terms

antedate, estival, gloaming, luster, sesquicentennial

3

fortnightly

noun fort·night·ly

Definition of fortnightly

plural

fortnightlies

: a publication issued fortnightly

First Known Use of fortnightly

1940

FORTNIGHTLY Defined for English Language Learners

fortnightly

play

adjective

Definition of fortnightly for English Language Learners

: happening or appearing once every two weeks

Learn More about fortnightly

Spanish Central: Translation of fortnightly Nglish: Translation of fortnightly for Spanish speakers

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up fortnightly? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show

WORD OF THE DAY

hebetude

play

lethargy or dullness

BROWSE DICTIONARY

fortnighter

fortnightlies

fortnightly

fortniter

for to

Test Your Vocabulary

Time Traveler Quiz: Which Word Came First?

Which came first?

sarcastic snarky

Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?

TAKE THE QUIZ

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ

Words at Play

a-woman-waits-at-the-end-of-a-gloomy-pier-does-she-wait-for-charon-the-ferryman-to-the-underworld-it-is-dark-but-she-carries-a-parasol

Great Words for Twilight and Darkness

Words for the goth in all of us

bunch-of-yellow-balloons-lit-by-the-sun

Helium: This Word Brought to You by a Solar Eclipse

And by the Sun, with some help from Greek.

watercolor-squares

We're Down With You Being—or Your Being?—a Square

It's about (you? your?) having your say.

Devilish Words

Don't blame a word use error on the devil.

Ask the Editors

video-title-words-of-the-year-1066

Words of the Year: 1066

Or, Why Pig Meat is Called 'Pork' and Cow Meat is Called 'Beef'

How Often Is 'Biweekly'?

Don't get us started on 'bimonthly'

video-irregardless-grammar-peeve-blend-of-the-synonyms-irrespective-and-regardless

Irregardless

It is in fact a real word (but that doesn't mean you should use it).

video-moose-goose-weird-plurals

Weird Plurals

One goose, two geese. One moose, two... moose. What's up with that?

Word Games

time-traveler-quiz-which-word-came-first

Time Traveler Quiz: Which Word Came First?

Which word entered the English language first?

Take the quiz

Name More Food!

Test your knowledge of food vocabulary!

Take the quiz

Spell It

Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?

Take the quiz

Citation

Do you know the person or title these quotes describe?

Play the game