cuffing season

American

[kuhf-ing see-zuhn] / ˈkʌf ɪŋ ˌsi zən /

noun

Slang.

a period during the fall and winter seasons, including holidays from Thanksgiving to Valentine’s Day, when people are more inclined to pair up in committed romantic relationships.

I’m sitting out cuffing season this year—I was miserable tied down like that last winter.

Etymology

Origin of cuffing season

First recorded in 2010–15

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.

See Examples For:

cuffing season

It’s turtlenecks and quality sweaters, buying decorative gourds for an evening dinner party and coupling up for cuffing season, if not longer term.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 29, 2024

In the spirit of cuffing season, they parted ways right before Valentine’s Day.

From New York Times ● Feb. 15, 2022

“There has been a stronger consideration recently for coupling off. It’s kind of like cuffing season, but for corona season.”

From The Guardian ● Apr. 1, 2020

With seasons reduced to little more than folklore, life had become something of a year-long cuffing season.

From The New Yorker ● Dec. 16, 2019

As cuffing season meets coughing season and airport crowds are reaching pre-pandemic levels, more travelers are likely getting on a plane when they’re not feeling 100 percent.

From Washington Post

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023