Bi-weekly = twice a week or every two weeks?

[nq:1]I checked dictionary.com and m-w.com. It seems that it means either one (twice a week or every 2 weeks), but then they're of totally different frequencies. How can I tell which one it means when I read "bi-weekly" in English???[/nq]
Just wait and see how often it really happens. Even better: if you can get in touch with the author, ask him/her/it to clarify with "twice weekly" or "fortni

[nq:1]I checked dictionary.com and m-w.com. It seems that it means either one (twice a week or every 2 weeks), but then they're of totally different frequencies. How can I tell which one it means when I read "bi-weekly" in English???[/nq]
You can't. On the other hand, many more periodicals, for example, are published every two weeks than are published two times a week. In fact, a biweekly is a

[nq:1]The problem is, of course, in reading rather than writing. Since you recognize the ambiguity, it is better to write "every two weeks" and "twice a week" instead.[/nq]
Great suggestion! Thank you all for the help,
cpliu

[nq:2]The problem is, of course, in reading rather than writing. ... to write "every two weeks" and "twice a week" instead.[/nq]
[nq:1]Great suggestion! Thank you all for the help,[/nq]
Or you use the standard words: biweekly (every other week) and semiweekly (twice a week).

dg (domain=ccwebster)

[nq:1]I checked dictionary.com and m-w.com. It seems that it means either one (twice a week or every 2 weeks), but then they're of totally different frequencies. How can I tell which one it means when I read "bi-weekly" in English?[/nq]
I read "bi-weekly" as "once per bi-week (fortnight)", and "semi-weekly" as "once per semi-week". Those who do not go along with me on this are stupid.

[nq:2]I checked dictionary.com and m-w.com. It seems that it means ... which one it means when I read "bi-weekly" in English?[/nq]
[nq:1]I read "bi-weekly" as "once per bi-week (fortnight)", and "semi-weekly" as "once per semi-week". Those who do not go along with me on this are stupid.[/nq]
I go along with you, except for the hyphens in "biweekly" and "semiweekly".

dg (domain=ccw

[nq:2]Great suggestion! Thank you all for the help,[/nq]
[nq:1]Or you use the standard words: biweekly (every other week) and semiweekly (twice a week).[/nq]
The problem with "biweekly" is that it is entirely standard in both senses in question. As it says in the usage note for the entry "bi-" in the *Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary* at

[nq:1]I go along with you, except for the hyphens in "biweekly" and "semiweekly".[/nq]
Yeah, I'm kind of old-fashioned in this, but I wouldn't be dogmatic about the hyphens. Nearly all hyphenated words lose their hyphens when they're used a lot. Consider "box top" > "box-top" > "boxtop", when the top of a box meant something other than just the top of a box.

Steve

[nq:2]I checked dictionary.com and m-w.com. It seems that it means ... which one it means when I read "bi-weekly" in English?[/nq]
[nq:1]I read "bi-weekly" as "once per bi-week (fortnight)", and "semi-weekly" as "once per semi-week". Those who do not go along with me on this are stupid.[/nq]
Well, in horticulture a biennial is a plant that has a two year cycle. Bi-annual, relatedly, means

[nq:1]The problem with "biweekly" is that it is entirely standard in both senses in question. As it says in the ... This ambiguity has been in existence for nearly a century and a half and cannot be eliminated by the dictionary."[/nq]
"1 a : two b : coming or occurring every two "
Both of these use "bi" in the sense of "two", not "half of", so I don't see the problem. If one uses "biweekl