| 释义 |
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers:: bi-, (sometimes before a vowel)bin- combining form - two; having two: bifocal
- occurring every two; lasting for two: biennial
- on both sides, surfaces, directions, etc: bilateral
- occurring twice during: biweekly
- denoting an organic compound containing two identical cyclic hydrocarbon systems: biphenyl
- (rare in technical usage) indicating an acid salt of a dibasic acid: sodium bicarbonate
- (not in technical usage) equivalent of di-1
Etymology: from Latin, from bis twice bi- combining form - a variant of bio-
bi /baɪ/USA pronunciation adj., n. [countable], pl.- Slang Termsbis, bi's. Slang. bisexual.
bi-,1 prefix. - bi- comes from Latin, where it has the meaning "twice, two.'' This meaning is found in such words as: bicentennial, biennial, bigamy, bilateral, binoculars, bipartisan, biped, bisect, biweekly.
In some words, esp. words referring to time periods, the prefix bi- has two meanings: "twice a + ~'' and "every two + ~-s''. Thus, biannual means both "twice a year'' and "every two years.'' Be careful; check many of these words. bi-2, WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2024bi•o /ˈbaɪoʊ/USA pronunciation n., pl. bi•os. - Informal Terms biography:[countable][a bio on the first president of the countablery.]
- Informal Terms biology:[uncountable][I had a rough course in bio last term.]
bio-, prefix. - bio- comes from Greek, where it has the meaning "life.'' This meaning is found in such words as: biodegradable, biology, biosphere.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2024bi (bī),USA pronunciation adj., n., pl. bis, bi's. - Slang Termsbisexual.
BI ,pl. BI's. - built-in.
Bi ,[Symbol, Chem.]- Chemistrybismuth.
bi-1 ,- a combining form meaning "twice,'' "two,'' used in the formation of compound words:bifacial; bifarious.Cf. bin-.
- Latin, combining form of bis; see twice
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). bi-2 ,- var. of bio-, esp. before a vowel:biopsy.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2024bi•o (bī′ō),USA pronunciation n., pl. bi•os, adj. [Informal.]n. - Informal Termsbiography.
- Informal Termsbiology.
adj. - Informal Termsbiographical.
- Informal Termsbiological:a bio control service using praying mantises to reduce the population of garden pests.
- 1945–50; by shortening; as adjective, adjectival, independent use of bio-, taken as a free form
- a combining form meaning "life'' occurring in loanwords from Greek (biography);
on this model, used in the formation of compound words (bioluminescence).
Also,[esp. before a vowel,] bi-. - akin to Latin vīvus living, Sanskrit jīvas. See quick combining form of Greek bíos life
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