bi-
English Edit
Alternative forms Edit
- bin- (before some vowel-initial roots)
Etymology Edit
PIE word |
---|
*dwóh₁ |
Borrowed from Latin bi-, from Proto-Italic *dwi-, from Proto-Indo-European *dwi-. Doublet of twi-
Pronunciation Edit
Prefix Edit
Previous: | uni- |
---|---|
Next: | tri- |
bi-
Usage notes Edit
In an old, common method used to indicate the presence of an acidic hydrogen, sodium hydrogen sulfate is called "sodium bisulfate" and sodium hydrogen carbonate is called "sodium bicarbonate". This method is not recommended by IUPAC and does not denote a “doubling up” of a specific group, which is reserved for the Greek prefix di-, as in carbon dioxide (“CO2”).
The prefix bi in the older system comes from the observation that there is two times as much carbonate (CO3) in sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO3) and other bicarbonates as in sodium carbonate (Na2CO3) and other carbonates.
As a prefix for periods, bi- is ambiguously used to mean either “once every two periods” or “twice every period”; this is particularly acute for biweekly, bimonthly, and biannual. To avoid ambiguity, semi- or twice can be used to unambiguously mean “every half period” (thus twice every period) or “twice every period”, but there is no general way to refer unambiguously to “once every two periods”. In some cases a separate word is unambiguous, as in fortnightly (“every two weeks”), or biennial (“every two years”), but there is no word that unambiguously refers to “every two months”. Due to the ambiguity, some prefer to use explicit phrases, like “every two months” or “twice a month”.
Synonyms Edit
Derived terms Edit
- bi
- biannual
- biautomaton
- biceps
- bichrome
- bicolor
- bicolour
- biconvex
- bicornuate
- bicycle
- bicyclic
- bicylindrical
- bidentate
- bidirectional
- biennial
- bifacial
- bifocals
- bigender
- bijugate
- bilabial
- bilabiate
- bilanguage
- bilateral
- bilinear
- bilingual
- billion
- bilobate
- bilogarithmic
- bilogarithmical
- bimanual
- bimester
- bimetal
- bimonthly
- binary
- binomial
- biped
- biplane
- bipod
- bipolar
- birefringent
- bireme
- birotate
- biscuit
- bisect
- bisection
- bisector
- biserrate
- bisexual
- bisexuality
- bitartrate
- bivalve
- biweekly
Translations Edit
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Anagrams Edit
Azerbaijani Edit
Etymology Edit
Pronunciation Edit
Prefix Edit
bi-
- (rarely productive) -less, un-, in-.
- Synonym: -siz
Derived terms Edit
Catalan Edit
Etymology Edit
Prefix Edit
bi-
Derived terms Edit
Further reading Edit
- “bi-” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
- “bi-”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2023
- “bi-” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
Czech Edit
Etymology Edit
Pronunciation Edit
Prefix Edit
bi-
Related terms Edit
Further reading Edit
- bi- in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého, 1960–1971, 1989
Danish Edit
Pronunciation Edit
Etymology 1 Edit
Prefix Edit
bi-
Etymology 2 Edit
Prefix Edit
bi-
See also Edit
Finnish Edit
Etymology Edit
Internationalism (see English bi-), ultimately from Latin bis.
Pronunciation Edit
Prefix Edit
bi-
Derived terms Edit
French Edit
Etymology Edit
Pronunciation Edit
Prefix Edit
bi-
Derived terms Edit
Galician Edit
Etymology Edit
Prefix Edit
bi-
Synonyms Edit
Derived terms Edit
Further reading Edit
- “bi-” in Dicionario da Real Academia Galega, Royal Galician Academy.
German Edit
Etymology Edit
Pronunciation Edit
Audio (file)
Prefix Edit
bi-
Derived terms Edit
Gothic Edit
Romanization Edit
bi-
- Romanization of 𐌱𐌹-
Ido Edit
Prefix Edit
bi-
Derived terms Edit
Indonesian Edit
Etymology Edit
From Dutch bi-, from Latin bi-.
Pronunciation Edit
Prefix Edit
bi-
Derived terms Edit
Further reading Edit
- “bi-” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia, Jakarta: Language Development and Fostering Agency — Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic Indonesia, 2016.
Irish Edit
Prefix Edit
bi-
- Alternative form of bith-, used before a slender T.
Mutation Edit
Irish mutation | ||
---|---|---|
Radical | Lenition | Eclipsis |
bi- | bhi- | mbi- |
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs. |
Further reading Edit
- Ó Dónaill, Niall (1977), “bit-”, in Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla, Dublin: An Gúm, →ISBN
Italian Edit
Etymology Edit
Pronunciation Edit
Prefix Edit
bi-
Derived terms Edit
Latin Edit
Etymology Edit
From Proto-Italic *dwi-, from Proto-Indo-European *dwi- (“two-; twice-”), prefix form corresponding to the numeral *dwóh₁ (“two”); the origin in PIE of the *i here is uncertain.[1].
Pronunciation Edit
Prefix Edit
bi-
Derived terms Edit
References Edit
- “bi-”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
- “bi-” on page 231/3 of the Oxford Latin Dictionary (1st ed., 1968–82)
- ^ De Vaan, Michiel (2008), “bi-”, in Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 71
Middle English Edit
Etymology 1 Edit
Inherited from Old English be-, from Proto-West Germanic *bi-, from Proto-Germanic *bi-, from *bi-; compare by-.
The pronunciation /bi-/ (instead of expected /bə-/) is probably due to the influence of the preposition by.
Alternative forms Edit
Pronunciation Edit
Prefix Edit
bi-
- A prefix forming transitive verbs from any content word, often denoting completion or thoroughness.
- A prefix forming prepositions, often denoting adjacency, position, or relation.
Derived terms Edit
Descendants Edit
References Edit
- “bi-, pref.(2).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.
- “bi-, pref.(3).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.
Etymology 2 Edit
Prefix Edit
bi-
- Alternative form of by-
Edit
Prefix Edit
bi-
Usage notes Edit
This prefix often corresponds to an English possessive ’s appended to the preceding word. For example, Diné bizaad means literally “the People their-language”, equivalent to “the People’s language” (i.e., Navajo language).
Related terms Edit
See also Edit
Northern Kurdish Edit
Prefix Edit
bi-
- forms the affirmative subjunctive mood of verbs.
Norwegian Bokmål Edit
Prefix Edit
bi-
See also Edit
References Edit
- “bi-” in The Bokmål Dictionary.
Norwegian Nynorsk Edit
Prefix Edit
bi-
See also Edit
References Edit
- “bi-” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.
Ojibwe Edit
Preverb Edit
bi-
- this way, here, hither (toward the speaker)
- Bi-anokiin.
- Come and work.
Related terms Edit
See also Edit
References Edit
- The Ojibwe People's Dictionary https://ojibwe.lib.umn.edu/main-entry/bi-pv-dir
Old English Edit
Alternative forms Edit
Etymology Edit
From bī (“by, near, around”).
Pronunciation Edit
Prefix Edit
bī-
Usage notes Edit
- Occurred primarily in nouns.
Derived terms Edit
- bīgenga (“inhabitant; observer; benefactor”)
- bīleofa (“support, sustenance, nourishment, capital”)
- bīswæc (“treachery”)
Descendants Edit
Old Saxon Edit
Etymology 1 Edit
An unstressed form of bī, from Proto-West Germanic *bī-.
Prefix Edit
bi-
- A productive prefix usually used to form verbs and adjectives, especially verbs with the sense “around, throughout” or makes transitive verbs from intransitive verbs, adjectives and nouns.
- bi- + brekan → bibrekan (“to break”)
- bi- + brengian → bibrengian (“to accomplish”)
- bi- + dēlian → bidēlian (“to deprive”)
- bi- + delvan → bidelvan (“to bury”)
- bi- + dempian → bidempian (“to suffocate”)
- bi- + dernian → bidernian (“to conceal, to hide”)
- bi- + dōdian → bidōdian (“to kill”)
- bi- + driogan → bidriogan (“to deceive”)
- bi- + drōragon → bidrōragon (“to bleed to death”)
- bi- + dumbilian → bidumbilian (“to make a fool”)
- bi- + *dwellian → bidwellian (“to hinder”)
- bi- + fāhan → bifāhan (“to embrace, seize”)
- bi- + fallan → bifallan (“to befall”)
- bi- + felhan → bifelhan (“to recommend, give over, confide”)
- bi- + fellian → bifellian (“to throw down”)
- bi- + findan → bifindan (“to notice, find out”)
- bi- + gangan → bigān, bigangan (“to celebrate”)
- bi- + gehan → bigehan (“to dare, confess”)
Derived terms Edit
Descendants Edit
Etymology 2 Edit
From bī (“by, near, around”).
Prefix Edit
bī-
Derived terms Edit
- bīgengio (“inhabitant”)
Polish Edit
Etymology Edit
Pronunciation Edit
Prefix Edit
bi-
Derived terms Edit
Further reading Edit
Portuguese Edit
Etymology Edit
Prefix Edit
bi-
- bi- (two-)
Derived terms Edit
Spanish Edit
Alternative forms Edit
Etymology Edit
Prefix Edit
bi-
Derived terms Edit
Further reading Edit
- “bi-”, in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014
Swedish Edit
Pronunciation Edit
Prefix Edit
bi-
- by-, next to, near, by the side, aside; same as English by- and German bei-; see also the rare preposition bi
- bi-, two, dual; from Latin bis (“twice”)