-
- To save this word, you'll need to log in.
leap year
noun
1
: a year in the Gregorian calendar containing 366 days with February 29 as the extra day
2
: an intercalary year in any calendar
Examples of leap year in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The Tortue Perpetual Calendar, launched in 2010, measured a hefty 41.2mm in diameter and featured a combination leap year and month indicator at 12 o’clock, a retrograde day indicator across the dial center, and a radial date indicator along the dial periphery.
—Oren Hartov, Robb Report, 15 July 2024
Its miraculous ganglia of tiny wheels and levers will adjust its readings to the quirky imperfections of the Gregorian calendar, including leap years.
—Jay Fielden, The New Yorker, 17 June 2024
Originating over 2,000 years ago, leap year was created to help align our calendar with the solar calendar and take account for the fact that the Earth takes slightly over 365 days to orbit the sun – 365.2422 days, to be exact.
—Grace Tucker, The Enquirer, 27 Feb. 2024
To address this issue, Julius Caesar introduced the Julian calendar, a solar calendar, which included a leap year system.
—John Tufts, The Indianapolis Star, 2 Feb. 2024
See all Example Sentences for leap year
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'leap year.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Time Traveler
The first known use of leap year was
in the 14th century
Dictionary Entries Near leap year
Cite this Entry
“Leap year.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/leap%20year. Accessed 11 Oct. 2024.
Kids Definition
leap year
noun
: a year in the Gregorian calendar containing 366 days with February 29 as the extra day
More from Merriam-Webster on leap year
Nglish: Translation of leap year for Spanish Speakers
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about leap year
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share