December

noun

De·​cem·​ber di-ˈsem-bər 

dē-

: the 12th month of the Gregorian calendar

Examples of December in a Sentence

Her birthday is in late December.

This December was not as cold as the past few Decembers have been.

Recent Examples on the Web

Like all teams, the month of December is going to be hectic. —Audrey Snyder, The Athletic, 1 Dec. 2024

For instance, New York City, which is expected to have highs 40 to 41 from Sunday to Thursday, will face its coldest start to December since 2019, when highs were 36 to 42 degrees Dec. 1 to 5, according to AccuWeather. —Mike Snider, USA TODAY, 1 Dec. 2024

Typically, this starts around December 20 and lasts through the first business day of January. —Kelly Phillips Erb, Forbes, 30 Nov. 2024

Christmas stays and plays December is just moments away and those jingle bells are jingling. —Maureen O'Hare, CNN, 30 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English Decembre, from Old English or Anglo-French, both from Latin December (tenth month), from decem ten — more at ten

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

December

noun

De·​cem·​ber di-ˈsem-bər 

: the twelfth month of the year

Etymology

Middle English Decembre, December "last month of the year," from early French decembre (same meaning), from Latin December, literally, "tenth month," from decem "ten" — related to decimal, dime

Word Origin

In the first calendar used by the ancient Romans, the year began with the month of March. The Romans called the tenth month of the year December, using the Latin word decem, meaning "ten." When the word was borrowed into early French, it became decembre. That was also how it was first spelled when it came into Middle English. In time, however, the English word was changed to match the original Latin in spelling and in having a capital letter.