winter
the cold season between autumn and spring in northern latitudes (in the Northern Hemisphere from the winter solstice to the vernal equinox; in the Southern Hemisphere from the summer solstice to the autumnal equinox).
the months of December, January, and February in the U.S., and of November, December, and January in Great Britain.
cold weather: a touch of winter in northern Florida.
the colder half of the year (opposed to summer).
a whole year as represented by this season: a man of sixty winters.
a period like winter, as the last or final period of life; a period of decline, decay, inertia, dreariness, or adversity.
of, relating to, or characteristic of winter: a winter sunset.
(of fruit and vegetables) of a kind that may be kept for use during the winter.
planted in the autumn to be harvested in the spring or early summer: winter rye.
to spend or pass the winter: to winter in Italy.
to keep, feed, or manage during the winter, as plants or cattle: plants wintering indoors.
Origin of winter
1Other words from winter
- win·ter·er, noun
- win·ter·ish, adjective
- win·ter·ish·ly, adverb
- win·ter·less, adjective
Words Nearby winter
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use winter in a sentence
In Stowe, Vermont, for instance, summer hiking and winter skiing drive most tourist traffic, but summer travel was dampened by the coronavirus’s first wave, and Vermont’s popular ski mountains may shut down this winter.
New research shows that 2018’s winter ice was the lowest in 5,500 years — and that human-caused climate change is linked to this record.
Bering Sea winter ice shrank to its lowest level in 5,500 years in 2018 | Carolyn Gramling | September 3, 2020 | Science NewsThey’re teaching students not just about climate change, but also how to live through droughts or long winters.
Schools Teach Kids How to Survive the Future’s Harsh Climates | Charu Kasturi | August 7, 2020 | OzyPriscu, a regents professor of polar ecology at Montana State University, got his first taste of winter more than 40 years ago after entering a doctoral program at the University of California, Davis in microbial ecology.
He Found ‘Islands of Fertility’ Beneath Antarctica’s Ice | Steve Nadis | July 20, 2020 | Quanta MagazineThe Arctic — that region that makes up the far North of our planet — has now emerged from its long winter night.
One line in “winter Wonderland” has stopped countless people dead in their tracks.
The Most Confusing Christmas Music Lyrics Explained (VIDEO) | Kevin Fallon | December 24, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTAfter all, the Russians were about to mount a winter offensive of their own.
But winter is dead, Clapton is tired of life on the road, and King unreliable in concert.
Not long ago, a whole host of artists were plowing these fields—Eric Clapton, B.B. King, Johnny winter.
With the harsh Middle Eastern winter approaching fast, what people in Syria and Iraq need most, in fact, is humanitarian support.
Dutch Biker Gangs Vs. ISIS | Nadette De Visser, Christopher Dickey | December 9, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTShe is spending the summer near Deppe, and he hears her play the programme she is going to give in Berlin next winter, every day.
Music-Study in Germany | Amy FayEach seems satisfied with the way his own branch is getting on: winter is the quicker worker.
Gallipoli Diary, Volume I | Ian HamiltonThe winter of 1897-98 was spent by Mr. Kipling and his family, accompanied by his father, in South Africa.
Kipling Stories and Poems Every Child Should Know, Book II | Rudyard KiplingOne day she had heard a man say, "If there is a drought we shall have the devil to pay with our stock before winter is over."
Ramona | Helen Hunt JacksonHe had the land in Tripp County that was broken into winter wheat, while that in the next county east was rented.
The Homesteader | Oscar Micheaux
British Dictionary definitions for winter
/ (ˈwɪntə) /
(sometimes capital) the coldest season of the year, between autumn and spring, astronomically from the December solstice to the March equinox in the N hemisphere and at the opposite time of year in the S hemisphere
(as modifier): winter pasture
the period of cold weather associated with the winter
a time of decline, decay, etc
mainly poetic a year represented by this season: a man of 72 winters Related adjectives: brumal, hibernal, hiemal
(intr) to spend the winter in a specified place
to keep or feed (farm animals, etc) during the winter or (of farm animals) to be kept or fed during the winter
Origin of winter
1Derived forms of winter
- winterer, noun
- winterish or winter-like, adjective
- winterless, adjective
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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