midwinter

American  

[mid-win-ter, -win-, mid-win-ter] / ˈmɪdˈwɪn tər, -ˌwɪn-, ˈmɪdˌwɪn tər /

noun

1. the middle of winter.

2. the winter solstice, around December 22.

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adjective

1. of, relating to, or occurring in the middle of the winter.

midwinter British  

/ ˈmɪdˈwɪntə /

noun

1. 1. the middle or depth of the winter

   2. ( as modifier )

      a midwinter festival

2. another name for winter solstice

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Other Word Forms

• midwinterly
  adjective
• midwintry
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of midwinter

before 1150; Middle English, Old English; see mid ¹, winter

Example Sentences

Bottom line, on a midwinter day when most of this country’s major-league baseball stadiums were empty, Chavez Ravine was full of life and wonder and winning.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 31, 2026

How were so many otherwise reasonable people pranked into venturing to an empty Brooklyn Bridge Park in the bleak midwinter as 2025 ebbed to nothing, for nothing?

From Salon • Jan. 21, 2026

Even in midwinter, they need to swim, but still must be kept warm and dry.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 7, 2025

The ground in November is not as cold as it would be in midwinter so some of the snow hitting the roads will probably melt, though larger accumulations could gather on colder grassy surfaces.

From BBC • Nov. 14, 2024

His beard was like a forest of ice-covered trees in midwinter, his eyebrows like a field of thistles, his breath as rank and foul as a midden in a bog.

From "Norse Mythology" by Neil Gaiman