How Do You Spell LEAP YEAR?

1. A leap year is a calendar year that contains an additional day, usually occurring once every four years. This additional day, known as a leap day, is inserted into the month of February, causing it to have 29 days instead of the usual 28. The purpose of leap years is to maintain synchronization between the calendar year and Earth's orbit around the sun, as it takes approximately 365.25 days for Earth to complete one orbit.

   To compensate for this extra quarter day, a leap year is introduced. However, not every year divisible by four is considered a leap year. To determine whether a year is a leap year, the following criteria apply: the year must be divisible by four but not divisible by 100, unless it is also divisible by 400. For example, the year 2000 was a leap year because it is divisible by 400, while the year 1900 was not a leap year because although it is divisible by four, it is also divisible by 100 but not by 400.

   Leap years play a significant role in keeping the calendar aligned with the astronomical seasons. By adding an extra day every four years, leap years prevent the calendar from slowly drifting out of sync with the solar year. This adjustment helps maintain seasons and various astronomical events at approximately the same time each year, ensuring consistency and accuracy.

2. • Every fourth year, containing 366 days-see bissextile.

   • Every fourth year, which is made to consist of 366 days, February having in a leap-year 29 days; civil year, the year adopted by a nation for the computation of time; lunar year, the period of 12 lunar months, or 354 days; common year, a year of 365 days; Julian year, the year established by Julius Caesar, consisting of 365 days for three years, and 366 days for every fourth year; Gregorian year, the corrected Julian year, now adopted by most civilised nations; Sabbatic year, among the anc. Jews, every seventh year, during which the land was suffered to lie untilled; sidereal year, the time in which the sun, departing from the place of any fixed star, returns to the same position.

   Etymological and pronouncing dictionary of the English language. By Stormonth, James, Phelp, P. H. Published 1874.

Common Misspellings for LEAP YEAR

The word "leap year" comes from the combination of two Old English words: "leap" and "year".

The word "leap" comes from the Old English word "hleapan", which means "to jump, run, or spring". The term is associated with the additional day added to the calendar during a leap year, which "jumps" over the usual arrangement of 365 days per year.

The word "year" is derived from the Old English word "gear", which means "circuit" or "revolution". It refers to the time it takes for the Earth to complete one orbit around the Sun.

Thus, the term "leap year" signifies a year that deviates from the regular pattern by including an extra day (February 29th) to adjust the calendar and effectively "jump" over an entire day in the cycle of time.

Similar spelling words for LEAP YEAR