summer

[ suhm-er ]

See synonyms for summer on Thesaurus.com

noun

the season between spring and autumn, in the Northern Hemisphere from the summer solstice to the autumnal equinox, and in the Southern Hemisphere from the winter solstice to the vernal equinox.
the period comprising the months of June, July, and August in the United States, and from the middle of May to the middle of August in Great Britain.

a period of hot, usually sunny weather: We had no real summer last year.
the hotter half of the year (opposed to winter): They spend the summers in New Hampshire and the winters in Florida.
the period of finest development, perfection, or beauty previous to any decline: the summer of life.
a whole year as represented by this season: a girl of fifteen summers.

adjective

of, relating to, or characteristic of summer: Iced tea is a summer drink.
appropriate for or done during the summer:summer clothes;summer sports.

having the weather or warmth of summer: summer days in late October.

verb (used without object)

to spend or pass the summer: They summered in Maine.

verb (used with object)

to keep, feed, or manage during the summer: Sheep are summered in high pastures.
to make summerlike.

Origin of summer

First recorded before 900; Middle English somer, Old English sumor; cognate with Dutch zomer, German Sommer, Old Norse sumar “summer”; akin to Sanskrit sámā “season, half-year, year,” Old Irish sam-, Old Welsh ham, Welsh haf “summer”

Other words from summer

sum·mer·less, adjective

Other definitions for summer (2 of 2)

summer²

[ suhm-er ]

noun

a principal beam or girder, as one running between girts to support joists.
a stone laid upon a pier, column, or wall, from which one or more arches spring: usually molded or otherwise treated like the arch or arches springing from it.

a beam or lintel.

Origin of summer

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English somer, from Anglo-French; Old French somier “packhorse, beam,” from unattested Vulgar Latin saumārius, equivalent to Latin sagm(a) “packsaddle” (from Greek ságma ) + -ārius noun suffix; see -ary, -er²

Also Obsolete, som·er [suhm-er] /ˈsʌm ər/ (for def. 1) .

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use summer in a sentence

The family lived on Park Avenue and in Rye, New York, summered on Lake George and had servants in the home.
Will the Real Jim Palmer Please Stand Up | Tom Boswell | September 27, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
It seems magical: a private island off Massachusetts, where the “beautiful, rich” extended Sinclair family has summered for years.
'We Were Liars': Teens Confront Their Beautiful, Rich Family's Dark Secrets | Samantha Levine | August 7, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Bracknell, for instance, was the name of the country estate where the mother of Oscar's titled little catamite summered.
Brian Bedford Interviewed on The Importance of Being Earnest | Kevin Sessums | January 22, 2011 | THE DAILY BEAST
We summered in Vermont, and me and my sister Ilyasah went to one of the top ten schools in the country [the Hackley School].
Malcolm X's Daughter Rebukes Al Qaeda Leader | Max Blumenthal | November 21, 2008 | THE DAILY BEAST
Birds that remain to winter in the locality in which they summered, and most of the animals, too, go about their affairs as usual.
Watched by Wild Animals | Enos A. Mills

They may thus winter from five to twenty-five miles from where they summered, from one thousand to several thousand feet lower.
Watched by Wild Animals | Enos A. Mills
The cattle that had summered in the hafod (the mountain byre) were returning to the hendre (the winter home).
Pabo, The Priest | Sabine Baring-Gould
September days are heralded by the return of the birds who have summered in Canada.
Sigurd Our Golden Collie and Other Comrades of the Road | Katharine Lee Bates
"Grit was sent him for a present by a man who summered at the ranch an' heerd Samson say he wanted a dawg," said the girl.
Rimrock Trail | J. Allan Dunn

British Dictionary definitions for summer (1 of 2)

summer¹

/ (ˈsʌmə) /

noun

(sometimes capital)
- the warmest season of the year, between spring and autumn, astronomically from the June solstice to the September equinox in the N hemisphere and at the opposite time of year in the S hemisphere
- (as modifier): summer flowers; a summer dress Related adjective: aestival
the period of hot weather associated with the summer

a time of blossoming, greatest happiness, etc
mainly poetic a year represented by this season: a child of nine summers

verb

(intr) to spend the summer (at a place)
(tr) to keep or feed (farm animals) during the summer: they summered their cattle on the mountain slopes

Origin of summer

Old English sumor; related to Old Frisian sumur, Old Norse sumar, Old High German sumar, Sanskrit samā season

Derived forms of summer

summerless, adjective
summer-like, adjective
summerly, adjective, adverb
summery, adjective
summeriness, noun

British Dictionary definitions for summer (2 of 2)

summer²

/ (ˈsʌmə) /

noun

Also called: summer tree a large horizontal beam or girder, esp one that supports floor joists
another name for lintel

a stone on the top of a column, pier, or wall that supports an arch or lintel

Origin of summer

C14: from Anglo-Norman somer, from Old French somier beam, packhorse, from Late Latin sagmārius (equus) pack(horse), from sagma a packsaddle, from Greek

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

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