bi

Usage note
All words except biennial referring to periods of time and prefixed by bi-¹ are potentially ambiguous. Since bi- can be taken to mean either “twice each” or “every two,” a word like biweekly can be understood as “twice each week” or “every two weeks.” To avoid confusion, it is better to use the prefix semi- to mean “twice each” (semiannual; semimonthly; semiweekly) or the phrase twice a or twice each (twice a month; twice a week; twice each year), and for the other sense to use the phrase every two (every two months; every two weeks; every two years).

variant of bio-, especially before a vowel: biopsy.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To bi

Collins

World English Dictionary

bi¹ (baɪ)

—*adj*, —n
	slang bisexual short for bisexual

bi²

—*the internet domain name for*
	Burundi

Bi

—*the chemical symbol for*
	bismuth

bi- or (sometimes before a vowel) bin-¹

—*combining form*
1.	two; having two: bifocal
2.	occurring every two; lasting for two: biennial
3.	on both sides, surfaces, directions, etc: bilateral
4.	occurring twice during: biweekly
5.	a. denoting an organic compound containing two identical cyclic hydrocarbon systems: biphenyl
	b. (rare in technical usage) indicating an acid salt of a dibasic acid: sodium bicarbonate
	c. (not in technical usage) equivalent of di-

[from Latin, from bistwice]

bin- or (sometimes before a vowel) bin-¹

—*combining form*

[from Latin, from bistwice]

bi-²

—*combining form*
	a variant of bio-

bio- or (before a vowel) bi-

—*combining form*
1.	indicating or involving life or living organisms: biogenesis; biolysis
2.	indicating a human life or career: biography; biopic

[from Greek bios life]

bi- or (before a vowel) bi-

—*combining form*

[from Greek bios life]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Dictionary.com's 21st Century Lexicon

Main Entry:	BI
Part of Speech:	n
Definition:	See business intelligence

Dictionary.com's 21st Century Lexicon
Copyright © 2003-2013 Dictionary.com, LLC
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

bi-

prefix meaning "two, twice, double," etc., from L. bi-, from Old L. dvi- (cognate of Skt. dvi-, Gk. di-, O.E. twi-), from PIE base *dwo- "two." Nativized from 16c.

1956, colloquial abbreviation of bisexual (see bisexuality).

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage

Medical Dictionary

Bi
The symbol for the element bismuth.

bi- ¹ or bin-
pref.

Two: bilateral.
Both: binaural.
Both sides, parts, or directions: biconcave.
Containing twice the proportion of a specified chemical element or group necessary for stability: bicarbonate.
Containing two chemical atoms, radicals, or groups: biphenyl.

bi- ²
pref.
Variant of bio-.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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American Heritage

Science Dictionary

Bi
The symbol for bismuth.

bismuth

(bĭz'məth) Pronunciation Key
Symbol Bi
A brittle, pinkish-white, crystalline metallic element that occurs in nature as a free metal and in various ores. Bismuth is the most strongly diamagnetic element and has the highest atomic number of all stable elements. It is used to make low-melting alloys for fire-safety devices. Atomic number 83; atomic weight 208.98; melting point 271.3°C; boiling point 1,560°C; specific gravity 9.747; valence 3, 5. See Periodic Table.

Slang Dictionary

bi definition

n.
one of the biceps. (Bodybuilding. Typically BI. Usually plural.) : I have to work on my BIs and then build up my thighs.
mod.
bisexual. : Suddenly she suspected that she was getting involved in some sort of strange bi activities.
n.
a bisexual person. : This information of interest only to bis and gays.

Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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FOLDOC

Computing Dictionary

bi definition

networking
The country code for Burundi.
(1999-01-27)

American Heritage

Abbreviations & Acronyms

bi
Bislama

bisexual
bismuth

background information
bodily injury
built-in

Encyclopedia Britannica

Encyclopedia

in art, Chinese jade carved in the form of a flat disk with a hole in the centre. The earliest examples, which are unornamented, date from the Neolithic Period (c. 5000-2000 BC). Later examples, from the Shang (18th-12th century BC) and Zhou dynasties (1111-256/255 BC), have increasingly elaborate surface embellishment, especially in the late Zhou (c. 600-256/255 BC), when the bi appeared in combination with other forms

Learn more about bi with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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Matching Quote

"Observing him in these moods, I often dwelt meditatively upon the old philosophy of the Bi-Part Soul, and amused myself with the fancy of a double Dupin—the creative and the resolvent."

-Edgar Allan Poe

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