Wordsmith.org: the magic of words


A.Word.A.Day

About | Media | Search | Contact  


Home

Today's Word

Subscribe

Archives



Mar 15, 2023
This week’s theme
Words related to the number 29

This week’s words
aderation
saturnalian
bissextile
lunation
occiput

bissextile
Patiently waiting until 2024 for my next birthday
Image: Amazon

Bookmark and Share Facebook Twitter Digg MySpace Bookmark and Share
A.Word.A.Day
with Anu Garg

bissextile

PRONUNCIATION:
(by-SEKS-til/tyl)

MEANING:
adjective: Relating to the leap year or the extra day in a leap year.
noun: Leap year.

ETYMOLOGY:
From Latin bisextilis annus (leap year), from Latin bissextus (Feb 29: leap day), from bi- (two) + sextus (sixth), from the fact that the sixth day before the Calends of March (Feb 24) appeared twice every leap year. Earliest documented use: 1398.

USAGE:
“You do know that 2012 will be a bissextile year, don’t you?”
Jack Dillard; Chocolate Milk for You, Water for Your Tree; The Times (Shreveport, Louisiana); Dec 11, 2011.

See more usage examples of bissextile in Vocabulary.com’s dictionary.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
It is better to prevent crimes than to punish them. -Cesare Beccaria, philosopher and politician (15 Mar 1738-1794)

We need your help

Help us continue to spread the magic of words to readers everywhere

Donate

Subscriber Services
Awards | Stats | Links | Privacy Policy
Contribute | Advertise

© 1994-2024 Wordsmith