Standard Lemma guide

intercalary

adj · noun · 6 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • US: /ˌɪnt.ɚˈkæl.ɚ.i/
  • US: /ɪnˈtɝː.kə.lɛɹ.i/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Describing a time period inserted between others; leap, (as in leap day, leap month, or leap year)

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: not-comparable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

adj

Meaning 2

Inserted between other things

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: broadly, not-comparable

Topics: sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

adj

Meaning 3

Inserted between other things

of a meristem: situated between zones of permanent tissue, thus a shoot growing at the base of a leaf, in comparison with apical growth at the tip of a root or plant.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: broadly, not-comparable

Topics: biology, botany, natural-sciences, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

adj

Meaning 4

Inserted between other things

of a wing vein: between the major veins common to insect wings.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: broadly, not-comparable

Topics: biology, entomology, natural-sciences, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

noun

Meaning 5

Such a time period

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

adjective satellite

Meaning 6

having a day or month inserted to make the calendar year correspond to the solar year:

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • Feb. 29 is an intercalary day
  • a leap year is an intercalary year

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

From Latin intercalārius, from intercalāris, from intercalō, from inter (“among”) + calō (“call out, proclaim”).

Across languages

Translations

17 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: كَبِيس (kabīs) — of a time period, inserted between others
  • Aramaic: ܟܒܝܫ (kabbīš) — of a time period, inserted between others
  • Bulgarian: вмъкнат (vmǎknat) — of a time period, inserted between others
  • Catalan: intercalar — of a time period, inserted between others
  • Chinese Mandarin: 閏 /闰 (rùn) — of a time period, inserted between others
  • Czech: přestupný — of a time period, inserted between others
  • French: intercalaire — of a time period, inserted between others
  • German: compound with Schalt- — of a time period, inserted between others
  • Japanese: 閏 (urū) — of a time period, inserted between others
  • Polish: przestępny — of a time period, inserted between others
  • Russian: високо́сный (visokósnyj) — of a time period, inserted between others
  • Serbo-Croatian: пре́ступнӣ — of a time period, inserted between others
  • Serbo-Croatian: préstupnī — of a time period, inserted between others
  • Spanish: intercalado — of a time period, inserted between others
  • Spanish: intercalar — of a time period, inserted between others
  • Telugu: అధికమాసము (adhikamāsamu) — of a time period, inserted between others
  • Vietnamese: nhuận — of a time period, inserted between others