February
Americannoun
-
Februaries
plural
noun
Pronunciation
Many people try to pronounce February with both sounds, as shown above. The common pronunciation , with the first replaced by , is the result of dissimilation, the tendency of like sounds to become unlike when they follow each other closely. An additional influence is analogy with January. Although sometimes criticized, this dissimilated pronunciation of February is used by educated speakers and is considered standard.
Usage
What does February mean? February is the second month of the calendar year. It follows January and is followed by March. It can be pronounced either FEB-roo-air-ee or FEB-yoo-air-ee. February is notable for being the shortest month of the year. It has 28 days, except during a leap year, when it has 29 due to the addition of a leap day. Every four years, a leap day is added to the end of February to adjust for the fact that the calendar is 365 days long but the Earth’s revolution around the sun actually takes 365 days and 6 hours. In the Northern Hemisphere, February is a winter month. In the Southern Hemisphere, it is a summer month. In the U. S. and some other countries, February is Black History Month. Several U. S. and international holidays also fall in February, including Groundhog Day on February 2, Valentine’s Day on February 14, and Presidents’ Day on the third Monday of February. The American football championship known as the Super Bowl is typically held in early February. Example: I was born on February 29, so I usually celebrate my birthday on February 28 on non-leap years.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of February
before 1000; Middle English; Old English Februarius < Latin Februārius (mēnsis) expiatory (month), derivative of februa (plural) expiatory offerings; see -ary
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:
Hull City have been fined £30,000 over discriminatory chanting during their 4-0 FA Cup defeat by Chelsea in February.
From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026
In an interview in February 2025, Bonino said her body was failing her and she was paying a physical price for having used it "as a political weapon" for decades.
From Barron's ● Sep. 11, 2026
That’s the lowest 12-month reading since March 2021 and the same as in February 2020 before the pandemic.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026
On February 23, 1887, an earthquake in the Ligurian Sea, with an estimated magnitude between 6.5 and 6.8, triggered a tsunami along the coast.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 10, 2026
It was February, as Abel had surmised, and now winter really took hold.
From "Abel's Island" by William Steig
But there is a weak correlation between warm Februaries, like we’ve seen this year, and early peak blooms.
From Washington Post ● Feb. 28, 2023
Santa Maria Airport, which did not see any rain last month, and San Luis Obispo Airport, which saw just a trace, had their driest Februaries on record.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 2, 2020
That wet and chilly February we endured was good news for the state’s snowpack: In previous years, warmer than usual Februaries have wreaked havoc with snowpack.
From Washington Times ● Mar. 21, 2017
You can see by the accompanying historical rainfall chart for our Februaries that for a few years we get lulled into thinking it’s not so bad.
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 18, 2017
Before the end of the month we find him taking pleasure, as in earlier Februaries, in the song of the thrush, which portends, he hopes, an end of the north-east wind.
From Life of John Keats His Life and Poetry, his Friends, Critics and After-fame by Sidney Colvin
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.
