October

noun

Oc·​to·​ber äk-ˈtō-bər 

: the 10th month of the Gregorian calendar

Examples of October in a Sentence

She started her job in early October.

He started early in October.

This will be our last October in New England.

Sales are up for this October.

The event happens every October.

Recent Examples on the Web

The Pennsylvania House of Representatives passed a bill protecting residents' rights to use and store cryptocurrency on October 22, 2024. —Andrey Sergeenkov, Forbes, 25 Oct. 2024

Angello, who earlier this year launched a new weekly program on SiriusXM, is set to perform at the Brooklyn Mirage tonight (October 25). —Billboard Staff, Billboard, 25 Oct. 2024

Hutchins was killed, and Rust director Joel Souza was injured, on October 21, 2021 after the Colt .45 Baldwin was pointing at the cinematographer fired off a live round during a rehearsal at the Bonanza Creek Ranch near Santa Fe, where the indie Western was filming. —Dominic Patten, Deadline, 25 Oct. 2024

Major Fitness Leg Press Hack Squat Machine AH1 $1,400 Major Fitness Major Fitness Adjustable Bench $400 $260 Major Fitness Xterra Fitness Xterra’s Fall Into Savings event, running through October 31, has deals soaring up to 60% off. —Suzy Forman, SELF, 25 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English Octobre, from Old English & Anglo-French; Old English October, from Latin, 8th month of the early Roman calendar, from octo; Anglo-French, from Latin October

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing October

• October surprise

Kids Definition

October

noun

Oc·​to·​ber äk-ˈtō-bər 

: the tenth month of the year

Etymology

Middle English October, Octobre "the tenth month," from Old English October and early French octobre (both, same meaning), both from Latin October "the eighth month," from octo "eight"

Word Origin

According to its origin, the name October, which we know as the tenth month of the year, really means "eighth month." In the first calendar used in ancient Rome, the year had only ten months, starting in March and ending in December. The extra period between December and March was not considered part of the series of months. Later, when two extra months were added to the calendar, October became the tenth month but kept its old name. The Latin name came into Old English as october and into early French as octobre. It was spelled both ways in Middle English. But in time the influence of Latin fixed the spelling as october.