winter

English Online Dictionary. What means winter‎? What does winter mean?

English

Alternative forms

• Winter

Etymology

From Middle English winter, from Old English winter, from Proto-Germanic *wintruz (“winter”). Cognate with West Frisian winter (“winter”), Dutch winter (“winter”), German Winter (“winter”), Danish, Swedish and Norwegian vinter (“winter”), Icelandic vetur (“winter”).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈwɪntə/
• (General American, Canada) enPR: wĭnʹtər, IPA^(key): /ˈwɪntɚ/, [ˈwɪɾ̃ɚ], [ˈwɪntʰɚ], [ˈwɪnɚ]
• Homophone: winner (US, Canada, some dialects)
• Hyphenation: win‧ter
• Rhymes: -ɪntə(ɹ)

Noun

winter (countable and uncountable, plural winters)

2. Traditionally the fourth of the four seasons, typically regarded as being from December to February in continental regions of the Northern Hemisphere or the months of June, July, and August in the Southern Hemisphere. It is the time when the sun is lowest in the sky, resulting in short days, and the time of year with the lowest atmospheric temperatures for the region.
   • 1785, William Cowper, “Tirocinium: or, A Review of Schools." in The Poems of William Cowper, Vol. II., The Press of C. Whittingham (1822), page 174:

     There shall he learn, ere sixteen winters old,
     That [...]
3. (figuratively, poetic) The period of decay, old age, death, or the like.
4. (countable, fashion) Someone with dark skin, eyes and hair, seen as best suited to certain colors of clothing.
5. (obsolete) An appliance to be fixed on the front of a grate, to keep a kettle warm, etc.
6. (India, archaic) The rainy season.
   • 1584, Barret, in Hakl. ii. 413

     Note that the Citie of Goa is the principall place of all the Oriental India, and the winter thus beginneth the 15 of May, with very great raine.

   • 1610, Finch, in Purchas, i. 423

     The Winter heere beginneth about the first of Iune and dureth till the twentieth of September, but not with continuall raines as at Goa, but for some sixe or seuen dayes every change and full, with much wind, thunder and raine.

   • 1678, Fryer, 410

     In Winter (when they rarely stir) they have a Mumjama, or Wax Cloth to throw over it […]

   • 1770,—Raynal, tr. 1777, i. 34

     The mere breadth of these mountains divides summer from winter, that is to say, the season of fine weather from the rainy […] all that is meant by winter in India is the time of the year when the clouds […] are driven violently by the winds against the mountains, […]

Usage notes

Note that season names are not capitalized in modern English except where any noun would be capitalized, e.g. at the beginning of a sentence or as part of a name (Old Man Winter, the Winter War, Summer Glau). This is in contrast to the days of the week and months of the year, which are always capitalized (Thursday or September).

Hyponyms

Derived terms

Translations

See also

Verb

winter (third-person singular simple present winters, present participle wintering, simple past and past participle wintered)

1. (intransitive) To spend the winter (in a particular place).
2. (transitive) To store something (for instance animals) somewhere over winter to protect it from cold.

Derived terms

• overwinter
• Wintered Over Device
• winterer
• wintering

Translations

Anagrams

• Trewin, twiner

Afrikaans

Etymology

From Dutch winter, from Middle Dutch winter, from Old Dutch winter, from Proto-Germanic *wintruz.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈvən.tər/

Noun

winter (plural winters)

1. winter

See also

Alemannic German

Alternative forms

• wenter, wénter

Etymology

From Middle High German winter, from Old High German wintar, from Proto-Germanic *wintruz. Cognate with German Winter, Dutch winter, English winter, Swedish vinter.

Noun

winter m

1. (Issime, Carcoforo) winter

See also

References

• Patuzzi, Umberto, ed., (2013) Luserna / Lusérn: Le nostre parole / Ünsarne börtar / Unsere Wörter [Our Words], Luserna, Italy: Comitato unitario delle isole linguistiche storiche germaniche in Italia / Einheitskomitee der historischen deutschen Sprachinseln in Italien

Dutch

Etymology

From Middle Dutch winter, from Old Dutch winter, from Proto-Germanic *wintruz.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈʋɪn.tər/
• Hyphenation: win‧ter
• Rhymes: -ɪntər

Noun

winter m (plural winters, diminutive wintertje n)

1. winter

   De winter van dat jaar was bijzonder koud. ― The winter of that year was exceptionally cold.

   Kinderen speelden in de sneeuw tijdens de winter. ― Children played in the snow during the winter.

   Het wintertje was mild en aangenaam. ― The short winter was mild and pleasant.

Derived terms

Descendants

• Afrikaans: winter
• Negerhollands: winter
• → Sranan Tongo: wenter

See also

Middle Dutch

Etymology

From Old Dutch winter, from Proto-Germanic *wintruz.

Noun

winter m

1. winter

Inflection

This noun needs an inflection-table template.

Derived terms

• wintersch
• middewinter
• wintercoude
• winterdach

Descendants

• Dutch: winter
  • Afrikaans: winter
  • Negerhollands: winter
  • → Sranan Tongo: wenter
• Limburgish: wintjer

Further reading

• “winter”, in Vroegmiddelnederlands Woordenboek, 2000
• Verwijs, E., Verdam, J. (1885–1929) “winter”, in Middelnederlandsch Woordenboek, The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, →ISBN

Middle English

Alternative forms

• wintere, wintre, wynter

Etymology

From Old English winter, from Proto-West Germanic *wintru, from Proto-Germanic *wintruz.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈwintər/

Noun

winter (plural wintres)

1. winter

Descendants

• English: winter
• Scots: winter
• Yola: wonter

References

• “winter, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.

See also

Middle High German

Alternative forms

• winder

Etymology

From Old High German wintar, from Proto-West Germanic *wintru, from Proto-Germanic *wintruz.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (before 13^th CE) /ˈwintər/

Noun

winter m

1. winter

Declension

Related terms

Descendants

• Alemannic German: Winter
  • Italian Walser: wénter, winter, wenter
  • Swabian: Wender
• Bavarian: Winta
  • Cimbrian: bintar
  • Mòcheno: binter
  • Udinese: binter, bintar
• Central Franconian: Wenter, Wengter (Ripuarian, now chiefly western dialects), Wonter, Wönter (Eifel)
  • Hunsrik: Winter
  • Luxembourgish: Wanter
• German: Winter
• East Central German:
  • Silesian East Central German: Winter
  • Vilamovian: wynter
• Yiddish: ווינטער (vinter)

See also

References

• Benecke, Georg Friedrich, Müller, Wilhelm, Zarncke, Friedrich (1863) “winter”, in Mittelhochdeutsches Wörterbuch: mit Benutzung des Nachlasses von Benecke, Stuttgart: S. Hirzel
• "winter" in Köbler, Gerhard, Mittelhochdeutsches Wörterbuch (3rd edition 2014)

Old Dutch

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *wintruz.

Noun

winter m

1. winter

Inflection

Descendants

• Middle Dutch: winter
  • Dutch: winter
    • Afrikaans: winter
    • Negerhollands: winter
    • → Sranan Tongo: wenter
  • Limburgish: wintjer

Further reading

• “winter”, in Oudnederlands Woordenboek, 2012

Old English

Etymology

From earlier *wintr < *wintru, from Proto-Germanic *wintruz. Cognate with Old Frisian winter, Old Saxon wintar, Old Dutch winter, Old High German wintar, Old Norse vetr, Gothic 𐍅𐌹𐌽𐍄𐍂𐌿𐍃 (wintrus).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈwin.ter/

Noun

winter m

1. winter
   • late 9th century, translation of Bede's Ecclesiastical History

2. year
   • The Dialogues of Solomon and Saturn

   • The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle

Usage notes

The dative/instrumental usually retains the older u-stem form wintra, even in later Old English.

Declension

Strong a-stem:

Derived terms

• midwinter
• winterlǣċan
• winterlīċ
• -wintre
• wintres dæġ
• wintriġ

Descendants

• Middle English: winter, wintere, wintre, wynter
  • English: winter
  • Scots: winter
  • Yola: wonter

See also

References

• Joseph Bosworth and T. Northcote Toller (1898) “winter”, in An Anglo-Saxon Dictionary‎^[3], 2nd edition, Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Scots

Etymology

From Middle English winter, from Old English winter, from Proto-Germanic *wintruz.

Noun

winter (plural winters)

1. winter

West Frisian

Etymology

From Old Frisian winter, from Proto-Germanic *wintruz.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈvɪntər/

Noun

winter c (plural winters, diminutive winterke)

1. winter

Derived terms

• wintermoanne

See also

Further reading

• “winter”, in Wurdboek fan de Fryske taal (in Dutch), 2011