bi-

See also Appendix:Variations of "bi"

English

Etymology

From Latin bis (“twice”).

Prefix

bi-

1. two -
2. (chemistry) half - 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-" (e.x. carbon dioxide, CO2).

Synonyms

• di-
• duo-

Derived terms

terms derived from bi-

bi biannual biceps bichrome bicolor biconvex bicornuate bicycle bicyclic bicylindrical bidentate bidirectional

biennial bifacial bifocals bijugate bilabial bilabiate bilateral bilinear bilingual billion bilobate

bimanual bimester bimetal bimonthly binary binomial biped bipod biplane bipolar bireme

birefringent birotate biscuit bisect bisection bisector biserrate bisexual bisexuality bitartrate bivalve biweekly

Translations

two-

Dutch: bi-, twee-, dubbel- French: bi- (fr) Irish: dé- (ga) Italian: bi- (it)

Malay: dwi- (ms) Manx: daa- (gv) Spanish: bi-, bis- biz-

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Danish

Pronunciation

• IPA: /bi/, [ˈb̥i]

Etymology 1

From German bei- (“by-”).

Prefix

bi-

1. by-, side-

Synonyms

• side-

Etymology 2

From Latin bis (“twice”).

Prefix

bi-

1. bi-

Synonyms

• di-
• tve-
• dobbelt-

See also

[+] Danish words prefixed with bi-

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French

Etymology

From Latin bis (“twice”).

Prefix

bi-

1. bi-

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Italian

Etymology

From Latin bis (“twice”).

Prefix

bi-

1. bi-
2. di-

See also

• Category:Italian words prefixed with bi-

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Navajo

Prefix

bi-

1. his, her, its, their

Usage notes

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

• b-
• bá
• baa
• be-
• bí
• bí-
• bíʼáłtsé
• bibaʼ
• biiʼ
• bííʼ
• biyiʼ
• daabí
• tʼáá bí

See also

• shi-
• ni-
• yi-
• ha-
• a-
• á-
• nihi-
• ał-
• ahił-

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Old English

Alternative forms

• biġ-, be-

Etymology

From bī "by, near, around". More at bī

Prefix

bī-

1. prefix meaning near, around (compare Lat. para-), occurring primarily in nouns

   bīgenga (“inhabitant; observer; benefactor”)

   bīnama (“pronoun”)

   bīleofa (“support, sustenance, nourishment, capital”)

   bīswæc (“treachery”)

   bīword (“proverb, byword”)

Descendants

• English by-

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Spanish

Alternative forms

• bis-
• biz-

Etymology

From Latin bis (“twice”).

Prefix

bi-

1. bi-

Derived terms

• bicorne
• bimensual
• bicicleta
• bilingüe
• bisemenal

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Swedish

Pronunciation

• IPA: /bi/, [ˈb̥i]

Prefix

bi-

1. by-, next to, near, by the side, aside; same as English by- and German bei-; see also the rare preposition bi
2. bi-, two, dual; from Latin bis (“twice”)

Derived terms

[+] Swedish words prefixed with bi-