July
Americannoun
noun
Usage
What does July mean? July is the seventh month of the calendar year, lasting 31 days and falling between June and August. It’s one of the 12 months of the Gregorian calendar. In the Northern Hemisphere, July is a summer month. The days during the period from July 3 to August 11 are traditionally known as the dog days of summer. In the Southern Hemisphere, July is a winter month. What happens in July?In Canada, July 1 is the patriotic national holiday known as Canada Day. In the U. S., July 4 is Independence Day, popularly known as the Fourth of July. July 14 is the national day of France, known in English as Bastille Day. In the U. S., July is observed as BIPOC Mental Health Month. In astrology, the sign Cancer applies to those born between June 22 and July 22. The sign Leo applies to those born between July 23 and August 23. Example: As soon as July begins, I can already feel the dog days of summer setting in.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of July
before 1050; Middle English julie < Anglo-French < Latin Jūlius ( Caesar ), after whom it was named; replacing Old English Julius < Latin; Middle English ju ( i ) l < Old French < Latin
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The renovation is among the preparations for the 250th anniversary celebrations of independence from in the United States this summer, on July 4.
From Barron's • Jun. 21, 2026
On July 6, 1962, the Energy Department set off a hydrogen bomb 75 miles southwest of Las Vegas, in the hopes of proving that nuclear weapons could be used for peaceful purposes, such as earthmoving.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 21, 2026
Police said he will appear before Belfast Magistrates' Court on 15 July.
From BBC • Jun. 20, 2026
The review grew out of an interdisciplinary workshop focused on interspecies cooperation that took place in Cambridge in July 2023.
From Science Daily • Jun. 20, 2026
The Germans made one final effort to capture the fort on July 11, reaching its walls before they were driven off.
From "The War to End All Wars: World War I" by Russell Freedman
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
