a plant having a life cycle that normally takes two seasons from germination to death to complete; flowering biennials usually bloom and fruit in the second season
having a life cycle lasting two seasons; "a biennial life cycle"; "parsnips and carrots are biennial plants often grown as annuals"
occurring every second year; "they met at biennial conventions"
in a serious manner; "talking earnestly with his son"; "she started studying snakes in earnest"; "a play dealing seriously with the question of divorce"
a system of means and activities whereby a social institution functions; "the complex machinery of negotiation"; "the machinery of command labored and brought forth an order"