winter
Americannoun
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winters
plural
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the cold season between autumn and spring in northern latitudes (in the Northern Hemisphere from the winter solstice to the vernal equinox; in the Southern Hemisphere from the summer solstice to the autumnal equinox).
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the months of December, January, and February in the U.S., and of November, December, and January in Great Britain.
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cold weather.
a touch of winter in northern Florida.
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the colder half of the year (opposed to summer).
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a whole year as represented by this season.
a man of sixty winters.
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a period like winter, as the last or final period of life; a period of decline, decay, inertia, dreariness, or adversity.
adjective
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of, relating to, or characteristic of winter.
a winter sunset.
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(of fruit and vegetables) of a kind that may be kept for use during the winter.
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planted in the autumn to be harvested in the spring or early summer.
winter rye.
verb (used without object)
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winters,
present (3rd person singular)
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wintered,
past participle, past
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wintering
present participle
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to spend or pass the winter.
to winter in Italy.
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to keep, feed, or manage during the winter, as plants or cattle.
plants wintering indoors.
noun
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(sometimes capital) the coldest season of the year, between autumn and spring, astronomically from the December solstice to the March equinox in the N hemisphere and at the opposite time of year in the S hemisphere
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( as modifier )
winter pasture
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the period of cold weather associated with the winter
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a time of decline, decay, etc
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poetic a year represented by this season
a man of 72 winters
verb
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(intr) to spend the winter in a specified place
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to keep or feed (farm animals, etc) during the winter or (of farm animals) to be kept or fed during the winter
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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wintersimple
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winterssimple
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have winteredperfect
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has winteredperfect
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am winteringprogressive
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are winteringprogressive
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is winteringprogressive
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have been winteringperfect progressive
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has been winteringperfect progressive
Past
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winteredsimple
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had winteredperfect
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was winteringprogressive
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were winteringprogressive
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had been winteringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of winter
before 900; (noun) Middle English, Old English; cognate with German Winter, Old Norse vetr, Gothic wintrus; (v.) Middle English, derivative of the noun; akin to wet, water
Explanation
Winter is the coldest season of the year, often bringing snow, shorter days, longer nights, and cloudy gray skies. The word winter describes the season when temperatures drop, and the days grow shorter. It’s a time when nature slows down — trees lose their leaves, animals hibernate, and people bundle up in warm clothes. In some places, winter means snow-covered landscapes, snowball fights, and cozy nights spent by a warm fire, while in others, it might simply mean cooler weather than usual.
Vocabulary lists containing winter
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:
The record follows a winter that produced the worst snowpack on record in the Colorado River Basin.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026
“A warmer-than-normal winter across Northwest Europe and the U.S. Northeast would clearly provide some relief, particularly if heating demand remains contained,” BofA analysts said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026
The most extreme conditions occurred in 2023, when Antarctica recorded both its lowest summer minimum and its lowest winter maximum since satellite observations began.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 16, 2026
In winter, "pupils are forced to keep their coats on," he said, while summer heatwaves have raised questions about whether end-of-year exams can go ahead.
From Barron's ● Oct. 16, 2026
Last winter my father had killed only three bearded seals and there was a whole month when we didn't have much to eat.
From "Black Star, Bright Dawn" by Scott O'Dell
Their gatherings can be an antidote to the bleak upstate New York winters in a town where few nearby bars cater to students.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026
My husband wants to spend about $1.2 million on a second home somewhere warm, where we could spend the winters and have the kids and our friends come stay.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 7, 2026
You may already have hung thicker curtains and blocked the draughts over the last couple of winters, but do not forget to switch off radiators in rooms you are not using and wrap up.
From BBC ● Sep. 28, 2026
After enduring 30 Chicago winters, I gifted myself my Hollywood dream of being an actor surrounded by palm trees and green juice rather than tundra and cheese.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 25, 2026
The sidewalks of Williamsburg were cracked squares of cement, the streets paved with asphalt that softened in the stifling summers and broke apart into potholes in the bitter winters.
From "The Chosen" by Chaim Potok
“A monarch that wintered in Monterey might end up in Las Vegas or Boise or Spokane that next spring and summer,” he said.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 8, 2023
In the classic migration pattern, flocks that wintered in the southern U.S. fly north in the spring, returning to the same spots in the high and sub-Arctic to breed and nest.
From National Geographic ● Dec. 16, 2020
The social pages followed his comings and goings, when he summered in Bar Harbor and wintered in Boca Raton.
From The New Yorker ● Aug. 19, 2019
One swan got blown to Arkansas in a snowstorm in the early 1990s, and wintered in Heber Springs, north of Little Rock, she said.
From New York Times ● Apr. 9, 2019
When it continued to zag she realized the pilot was following a meandering river where game wintered.
From "Julie of the Wolves" by Jean Craighead George
Ospreys are migratory birds which journey from wintering grounds in west Africa to Europe in the spring to breed.
From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026
After spending the summer in the Hamptons, Icahn is wintering at his house on the Miami-area island known as Billionaire Bunker.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 5, 2025
"The two species do overlap on their high elevation wintering grounds. It's mind-boggling that until now nobody figured out the Giant Hummingbird mystery, yet these two species have been separate for millions of years. "
From Science Daily ● May 13, 2024
With fall underway in Antarctica, some bird species are starting to scatter to their wintering areas.
From Science Magazine ● Mar. 18, 2024
A man could well despair of getting home at all, if the winds blew him over the Great South Sea—that weary waste, even the wintering birds delay one winter more before the northward crossing.
From "The Odyssey" by Homer
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