month
Americannoun
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Also called calendar month. any of the twelve parts, as January or February, into which the calendar year is divided.
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the time from any day of one calendar month to the corresponding day of the next.
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a period of four weeks or 30 days.
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Also called solar month. one-twelfth of a solar or tropical year.
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Also called lunar month. the period of a complete revolution of the moon around the earth, as the period between successive new moons synodic month, equal to 29.531 days, or the period between successive conjunctions with a star sidereal month, equal to 27.322 days, or the period between successive perigees anomalistic month, equal to 27.555 days, or the period between successive similar nodes nodical month, or draconic month, equal to 27.212 days.
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an unusually long period of time of indefinite length.
I haven't seen him for months.
idioms
noun
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one of the twelve divisions ( calendar months ) of the calendar year
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a period of time extending from one date to a corresponding date in the next calendar month
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a period of four weeks or of 30 days
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the period of time ( tropical month ) taken by the moon to return to the same longitude after one complete revolution around the earth; 27.321 58 days (approximately 27 days, 7 hours, 43 minutes, 4.5 seconds)
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the period of time ( sidereal month ) taken by the moon to make one complete revolution around the earth, measured between two successive conjunctions with a distant star; 27.321 66 days (approximately 27 days, 7 hours, 43 minutes, 11 seconds)
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Also called: lunation. the period of time ( lunar or synodic month ) taken by the moon to make one complete revolution around the earth, measured between two successive new moons; 29.530 59 days (approximately 29 days, 12 hours, 44 minutes, 3 seconds)
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informal a long unspecified period
Etymology
Origin of month
First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English mōnath; cognate with Old High German mānōd, Old Norse mānathr. See moon
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 average large value fund gained 1.6% in the quarter and fell 4.7% in the past month.
From Barron's • Apr. 3, 2026
Though the Cuban government has acknowledged talks, Díaz-Canel warned last month that “any act of aggression will clash with an impregnable resistance.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026
Let's take stock of the lessons of the first month of the season, with regards to racing, qualifying and safety.
From BBC • Apr. 3, 2026
Large growth funds in particular have suffered, down 9% on average in the quarter and 5.4% in the past month.
From Barron's • Apr. 3, 2026
Bat liked to send emails; he sent emails every month to his grandmother who lived in Idaho, because he hated talking on the phone.
From "A Boy Called Bat" by Elana K. Arnold
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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.