February

noun

Feb·​ru·​ary ˈfe-b(y)ə-ˌwer-ē  ˈfe-brə- 

plural Februaries or Februarys

: the second month of the Gregorian calendar

How do you pronounce February?: Usage Guide

Dissimilation may occur when a word contains two identical or closely related sounds, resulting in the change or loss of one of them. This happens regularly in February, which is more often pronounced \ˈfe-b(y)ə-ˌwer-ē\ than \ˈfe-brə-ˌwer-ē\, though all of these variants are in frequent use and widely accepted. The \y\ heard from many speakers is not an intrusion but rather a common pronunciation of the vowel u after a consonant, as in January and annual.

Examples of February in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Given the amount of snowfall in February, this full moon is appropriately called the snow moon. —Janet Loehrke, USA TODAY, 11 Feb. 2025

New Years Rev, which follows a trio of besties on a trip to open for Green Day, will also star Jenna Fischer and Angela Kinsey from The Office February 10, 2025 A comedy movie involving Green Day is on its way. —Tomás Mier, Rolling Stone, 10 Feb. 2025

Looking over a February 7 filing by the now middle-aged Jane Doe’s lawyers and Tony Buzbee’s firm asking to voluntary dismiss Bad Boy Records as a defendant in the matter, Judge Analisa Torres could have pulled the plug on the whole case today. —Dominic Patten, Deadline, 10 Feb. 2025

Published on February 10, 2025 Photo : David Walls/Knight Frank There are five entrances. —Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 10 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English Februarie, from Old English Februarius, from Latin, from Februa, plural, feast of purification

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

February

noun

Feb·​ru·​ary ˈfeb-(y)ə-ˌwer-ē  ˈfeb-rə- 

: the second month of the year

Etymology

Old English Februarius "February," from Latin Februarius "February," literally, "of Februa," from Februa "feast of cleansing"

Word Origin

Every winter the ancient Romans would celebrate a festival of spiritual cleansing. The name of the festival was Februa. Because of its importance the Romans named the month in which it fell Februarius, which means "of Februa." The English name February comes from the Latin Februarius.