Where does “semiannual” come from?

Semiannual comes from English semi- plus annual, which derives from Latin annualis, formed with the suffix -alis from Latin annus meaning year, traced to Proto-Indo-European h₂et-.

semiannual (English): Biannual: occurring twice a year; Something...

Definitions

  1. Biannual: occurring twice a year; Something...

Ancestry of “semiannual”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Englishsemi-half; partial, incomplete; somewhat, rather,...
2Latinsēmi-half
3Proto-Indo-Europeansēmihalf; partially
Every word from Proto-Indo-European sēmi →Every word from English semi- →Every word from Latin sēmi- →