bilateral
adjective
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Since the prefix bi- means "two" in Latin, bilateral means essentially "two-sided". In the days when there were two superpowers, the U.S. and the Soviet Union regularly engaged in bilateral arms negotiations; such negotiations are much less common today. Sometimes bilateral refers to two sides of the same thing. A bilateral hip replacement, for instance, replaces both hip bones in the same operation. And bilateral symmetry (a term often used by biologists) refers to the fact that, in many organisms (such as humans), the left side is basically the mirror image of the right side.
Examples of bilateral in a Sentence
Sean Durns, The Washington Examiner, 6 June 2025
The countries — whose total trade in goods topped $582 billion last year — temporarily lowered most of the tariffs on each other’s goods after breakthrough bilateral trade talks in Geneva, Switzerland, last month.
—Kevin Breuninger, CNBC, 6 June 2025
The discussions between the two countries’ leaders will focus on bilateral relations between the two, along with discussions around the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, developments in the Middle East and trade policy, according to Kornelius.
—Filip Timotija, The Hill, 31 May 2025
Experts say that Moscow envisions a lengthy and difficult period of diplomatic engagement, via a strictly bilateral dialogue between Russian and Ukrainian negotiators.
—Fred Weir, Christian Science Monitor, 30 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for bilateral
Cite this Entry
“Bilateral.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bilateral. Accessed 9 Jun. 2025.
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