quadrennial
adjective
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
Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 6 Jan. 2026
Reliever Mason Miller will pitch for Team USA, joining a growing list that will see a handful of Padres leave Craig Stammen’s first spring training as manager to represent their country in the quadrennial tournament.
—Jeff Sanders, San Diego Union-Tribune, 18 Dec. 2025
Argentina and Lionel Messi will start their World Cup title defense against Algeria, while the U.S. was drawn Friday to open against Paraguay as soccer’s quadrennial championship returns to North America for the first time since 1994.
—Chantz Martin, FOXNews.com, 5 Dec. 2025
The Celtics center racked up 23 points, 18 rebounds, four blocks and two steals to power his native Portugal to a 62-50 win over Czechia in Europe’s quadrennial international basketball tournament.
—Zack Cox, Boston Herald, 27 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for quadrennial
Cite this Entry
“Quadrennial.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/quadrennial. Accessed 27 Jan. 2026.
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