semester

noun

se·​mes·​ter sə-ˈme-stər 

1

: either of the two usually 18-week periods of instruction into which an academic year is often divided

2

: a period of six months

semestral

sə-ˈme-strəl 

adjective

or semestrial

sə-ˈme-strē-əl 

Examples of semester in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Instructors and professors would still assign letter grades for students to know, but students' final GPAs and final transcripts for the first semester would not reflect them. — Yi-Jin Yu, ABC News, 11 Aug. 2026

Say goodbye to costly cartridge replacements mid-semester with the Canon Pixma G3272 MegaTank printer. — Juhi Wadia, PC Magazine, 10 Aug. 2026

Coleman and Powell both got on campus this winter, two of about 40 players to arrive a semester early. — Colleen Kane, Chicago Tribune, 9 Aug. 2026

The residence hall has a waiting list of 50 to 75 students, as of last week, for the fall semester that begins August 31, Fuerst said. — Kenneth R. Gosselin, Hartford Courant, 9 Aug. 2026

Word History

Etymology

German, from Latin semestris half-yearly, from sex six + mensis month — more at six, moon

First Known Use

1827, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing semester

• semester hour

Rhymes for semester

• ancestor
• arrester
• digester
• investor
• protester
• requester
• sequester
• silvester
• trimester
• ester
• esther
• fester

Kids Definition

semester

noun

se·​mes·​ter sə-ˈmes-tər 

: either of two terms of about 18 weeks each that make up a school year