autumn

[aw-tuh m]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR autumn ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

the season between summer and winter; fall. In the Northern Hemisphere it is from the September equinox to the December solstice; in the Southern Hemisphere it is from the March equinox to the June solstice.

a time of full maturity, especially the late stages of full maturity or, sometimes, the early stages of decline: to be in the autumn of one's life.

RELATED WORDS

harvest, fall

Nearby words

Origin of autumn

1325–75; < Latin autumnus; replacing Middle English autumpne < Middle French autompne < Latin

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for autumn

One afternoon we were watching Ingmar Bergman's Autumn Sonata.
Alfred Hitchcock’s Fade to Black: The Great Director’s Final Days|David Freeman|December 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
From the first shots of Autumn Sonata it's clear that this is going to be slow going.
Alfred Hitchcock’s Fade to Black: The Great Director’s Final Days|David Freeman|December 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Standing in the chill breeze of autumn, I knew something had passed between us.
What It Takes to Kill a Grizzly Bear|Doug Peacock|November 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The summer heat is fleeting, and the crisp golden brown of autumn lingers just a little bit longer than it should.
Jason Schwartzman Is the Nicest Jerk You’ll Ever Meet in ‘Listen Up Philip’|Emma Myers|October 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Another summer has passed, and with its passing the rites of autumn have begun.
The Doctor’s Note Must Die!|Russell Saunders|September 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
They come over to the East Coast in hordes in the autumn, mostly from Russia, where they also interbreed with the carrion crow.
Through East Anglia in a Motor Car|J. E. (James Edmund) Vincent
Randolph had been stirring the story of Lethingtons opening the coffer in a green cover, in the autumn of 1570.
The Mystery of Mary Stuart|Andrew Lang
Early in the autumn of 1882 the publishing office was moved to Cardington, Ohio.
Birth of a Reformation|Andrew Byers
In the autumn of 1825 the Times gave an account of the origin of one of the most gigantic enterprises of modern times.
Railway Adventures and Anecdotes|Various
The pale yellow glow of autumn twilight settles in deep peace upon the place.
Old Plymouth Trails|Winthrop Packard

British Dictionary definitions for autumn

autumn

noun

(sometimes capital)

Also called (esp US): fallthe season of the year between summer and winter, astronomically from the September equinox to the December solstice in the N hemisphere and from the March equinox to the June solstice in the S hemisphere
(as modifier)autumn leaves

a period of late maturity, esp one followed by a decline

Word Origin for autumn

C14: from Latin autumnus, perhaps of Etruscan origin

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

Word Origin and History for autumn

autumn

late 14c., autumpne (modern form from 16c.), from Old French autumpne, automne (13c.), from Latin autumnus (also auctumnus, perhaps influenced by auctus "increase"), of unknown origin. Perhaps from Etruscan, but Tucker suggests a meaning "drying-up season" and a root in *auq- (which would suggest the form in -c- was the original) and compares archaic English sere-month "August."

Harvest was the English name for the season until autumn began to displace it 16c. In Britain, the season is popularly August through October; in U.S., September through November. Cf. Italian autunno, Spanish otoño, Portuguese outono, all from the Latin word. Unlike the other three seasons, its names across the Indo-European languages leave no evidence that there ever was a common word for it.

Many "autumn" words mean "end, end of summer," or "harvest." Cf. also Lithuanian ruduo "autumn," from rudas "reddish," in reference to leaves; Old Irish fogamar, literally "under-winter."