quadrennial

adjective

qua·​dren·​ni·​al kwä-ˈdre-nē-əl 

1

: consisting of or lasting for four years

2

: occurring or being done every four years

quadrennial noun

quadrennially

kwä-ˈdre-nē-ə-lē 

adverb

Did you know?

Most things quadrennial occur every four years (that's the more common use). We can say, for example, that the U.S. presidential election is a quadrennial event. But we can also say that president's term in office is quadrennial, making good use of the "lasting four years" sense. The Latin combining form quadri- adds a factor of four to many English words: quadriceps (the thigh muscle, which has four parts), quadrilateral (a four-sided polygon), quadragenarian (a person in his or her 40s), and quadricentennial (a 400th anniversary), to name a few. The -ennial part of quadrennial has the same root as in biennial and centennial; all trace back to annus, the Latin word for "year."

Examples of quadrennial in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Mustafa also co-curated the Dhaka Art Summit in 2018 and is curating the forthcoming quadrennial Rubaiya Qatar, which will be held in Doha in November of 2026. — News Desk, Artforum, 24 July 2026

Every cranky American who still can’t get over the game’s lack of scoring, and rules that allow a crapshoot penalty-kick scenario to crown a quadrennial World Cup champion, would have fresh reason to gripe. — Sean Gregory, Time, 20 July 2026

For national tournaments, the corollary is how poorer countries always have to match up against richer ones for regional face-offs and qualifiers that culminate in the quadrennial dream that is the World Cup. — Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 20 July 2026

The buzzy summer dating show and the quadrennial global sports tournament both overperformed among the under-30 crowd, according to internal audience data obtained from the streamer, with the audiences for the two events overlapping significantly. — Josef Adalian, Vulture, 17 July 2026

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1656, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for quadrennial

• bicentennial
• biennial
• centennial
• decennial
• millennial
• perennial
• quinquennial
• triennial
• sesquicentennial

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