▪ I. winter, n.1
(ˈwɪntə(r))
Forms: sing. 1– winter; 3 Orm. winnterr, 3–7 wynter, (4 weinter, Sc. vyntir), 4–5 wintur, wintre, wyntre, wyntir, -ur, -yr(e, (4–6 vynter, Sc. vintir), 5 wintir, (wintare, winttur, whynter, vyntyr, 6 vintter). pl. 1 wintru (gen. wintra), 2–5 wintre, 4–5 wyntre; dat. 1 wintrum, 2 wintron, 2–3 -en; 1–6 winter, (3 Orm. winnterr, 4 vynter, etc. as in sing.), 4–6 wynter; 1 wintras, 3–5 wintres, 4–5 wyntres, (4 winteris, -es, etc.), 4– winters; 4–5 wyntren.
[OE. winter strong m. = OFris. winter, OS. wintar (MLG., MDu., LG., Du. winter), OHG. wintar (MHG., G. winter), ON. vetr, earlier vettr, vittr (Sw., Da. vinter, from LG.), Goth. wintrus:—*wentrus, prob. f. nasalized form of the Indo-Eur. base wed-, wod-, ud- to be wet, found in wet a., water n., otter.
Originally a u-stem, OE. winter had regularly gen. (rare) and dat. sing. in -a; but the ordinary gen. sing. in -es, dat. sing. in -e, and nom. pl. in -as, in -u, and without inflection, show general assimilation to other declensions.]
1. a. The fourth and coldest season of the year, coming between autumn and spring; reckoned astronomically from the winter solstice to the vernal equinox, i.e. in the northern hemisphere from the 22nd of December to the 20th of March; in popular use comprising the months of December, January, and February (or, according to some, November, December, and January); also often in contradistinction to summer, the colder half of the year (cf. midwinter). In the southern hemisphere corresponding in time to the northern summer.
(a) In general use. (Also personified.)
| c 888 ælfred Boeth. xxi. §1 On sumera hit bið wearm, & on wintra ceald. a 1000, c 1200, a 1225 [see summer n.1 1 (a)]. a 1250 Owl & Night. 458 Ne recche ich nouht of wintres teone. 1377 Langl. P. Pl. B. xvii. 226 As men may se in wyntre Ysekeles in eueses þorw hete of þe sonne, Melteth in a mynut while. 1382 Wyclif Isa. xviii. 6 Alle the bestes of erthe vp on hym shul dwelle al wynter. c 1450 J. Capgrave Life St. Gilbert (1910) 70 He wered no mo clothis in Wyntir þann in Somyr. c 1460 J. Russell Bk. Nurture 766 Wyntur with his lokkys grey febille & old. c 1530 Songs, Carols, etc. (E.E.T.S.) 133 Wynter etythe, that somer getith. 1532–3 Durham Househ. Bk. (Surtees) 192 In agestamento unius equi in vynter,..16 d. 1551 Recorde Cast. Knowl. (1556) 32 Haruest..continueth till the twelft day of December, and then doth the Son entre into Capricorn, & Winter beginneth. 1600 Shakes. A.Y.L. v. iv. 142 You and you, are sure together, As the Winter to fowle Weather. 1647 Cowley Mistr., Bathing in River 28 When rig'orous Winter binds you up with Frost. 1719 [see summer n.1 1 (a)]. 1786 Burns Twa Dogs 192 Thro' winter's cauld, or simmer's heat. 1820 Shelley Sensit. Pl. iii. 86 Winter came: the wind was his whip: One choppy finger was on his lip. 1824 Loudon Encycl. Gardening (ed. 2) 893 The season called winter by the natives of South America, lasting from May to November. 1840 Dickens Old C. Shop lii, Store of fire-wood for the winter. |
(
b) In particularized use,
esp. with qualification, or as denoting this season in a certain year.
| Beowulf 1128 Hengest ða ᵹyt wælfaᵹne winter wunode mid Finn. 971 Blickl. Hom. 213 Wæs se winter eac þy ᵹeare toþæs grim þæt maniᵹ man his feorh.. ᵹesealde. c 1205 Lay. 6034 Auere alche wintre inne Wales heo wuneden. 1375 Barbour Bruce iv. 338 In Rauchryne..[he] Lay till the vyntir neir wes gane. 1393 Langl. P. Pl. C. xiii. 198 After an hard wynter. 1398 Trevisa Barth. De P.R. iv. iv. (Add. MS. 27944) If þe wintir tofore honde was as springinge tyme hote and moyst. 1590 Shakes. Com. Err. iii. ii. 100, I warrant, her ragges and the Tallow in them, will burne a Poland Winter. 1634 Laud Diary Oct.–Dec., God bless us in the spring, after this green winter. 1740 C'tess Pomfret in C'tess Hartford's Corr. (1805) II. 161 Mr. Walpole and Mr. Dashwood stay the winter. 1810 Crabbe Borough xxii. 232 A winter pass'd since Peter saw the town, And summer-lodgers were again come down. |
(
c) Phr.
winter and summer: see
summer n.1 1 (
c).
b. With reference to the chilling or injurious effect of winter,
esp. on plants;
transf. a period resembling winter, wintry or cold weather.
| c 1000 Sax. Leechd. III. 274 Se wind [zephirus] towyrpð & ðawað ælcne winter. 1599 Dallam in Early Voy. Levant (Hakl. Soc.) 84 This day we had bothe wynter and somer. 1607 Shakes. Timon iii. vi. 33 The Swallow followes not Summer more willing, then we your Lordship. Tim. Nor more willingly leaues Winter, such Summer Birds are men. 1697 Dryden æneis ix. 913 When..bellowing Clouds..with an armed Winter strew the Ground. 1757 [Burke] Europ. Settlem. Amer. vii. xxii. II. 241 The second sort, which..bears the winter better, is a more tall and vigorous plant. 1801 Farmer's Mag. Nov. 467 They stood the Winter well. |
c. In
fig. and allusive use,
esp. in reference to old age, or to a time or state of affliction or distress.
| 1590 Greene Never too Late (1600) D 1, I am driuen in the winter of my yeares to abide the brunt of all stormes. 1594 Shakes. Rich. III, i. i. 1 Now is the Winter of our Discontent, Made glorious Summer by this Son of Yorke. 1606 ― Tr. & Cr. iv. v. 24. 1668 R. Steele Husbandman's Calling iii. (1672) 35 Prosperity..nourisheth so many weeds, that the winter of affliction hath much ado to master them. 1746 Shenstone Song, Winter 16 When will relenting Delia chase The winter of my soul? 1829 I. Taylor Enthus. x. 296 What has been done is not lost; the seed sown may spring up, even after a century of winter. 1849 Froude Nem. Faith vii. (ed. 2) 48 It is night and day..with all of us, if we want to keep in health. To be sure, now and then there will come a North Pole winter. 1869 Tennyson Passing of Arthur 4 When the man was..In the white winter of his age. |
2. Put for ‘year’: nearly always
pl. with a numeral; often in expressions referring to a person's age.
In early use as a mere synonym of ‘year’; later
poet. or
rhet., chiefly in reference to advanced age or to a protracted period of hardship or misfortune (
cf. 1 c, and
summer n.1 2). See also
thrinter,
twinter.
| Beowulf 2209 Syððan Beowulfe bræde rice on hand ᵹehwearf; he ᵹeheold tela fiftiᵹ wintru. a 900 Saxon Geneal. in O.E. Texts 179 Ða wæs agan his eldo xxiii wintra. c 1000 Ags. Gosp. John ii. 20 Þis tempel wæs ᵹetimbrod on six & feowertiᵹon wintron [Hatton wintren]. 1154 O.E. Chron. (Laud MS.) an. 1137, & ðet lastede þa xix wintre wile Stephne was king. a 1200 Moral Ode 4 in Lamb. Hom. 159 Þah ich bo a wintre ald to ȝung ich em on rede. c 1205 Lay. 9028 Tou and twenti wintre þis lond he iwalde. Ibid. 9695 Ah al oðer hit iwarð inne þan twam wintren. c 1275 Passion of our Lord 132 in O.E. Misc. 41 Vele wintre hit is ago þe prophete hit seyde. 1377 Langl. P. Pl. B. xii. 3, I haue folwed þe in feithe þis fyue and fourty wyntre. |
| c 893 ælfred Oros. i. xiv, Þa Læcedemonia besætan þa burᵹ Mæs[ian]e x winter. a 1000 Be monna wyrdum 9 God ana wat hwæt him weaxendum winter bringað. c 1200 Ormin 15594 Fowwerrtiȝ winnterr ȝedenn forþ & ȝet tær tekenn sexe. c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 919 Loth was fifti winter hold. 13.. Northern Passion 935 (Camb. Gg. 5. 31) Þis thre vynter. c 1386 Chaucer Monk's T. 69 Fully twenty wynter yeer by yeere He hadde of Israel the gouernance. c 1400 Rule St. Benet (prose) lxx. 46 Til þai be o fiftene winter elde. 14.. Pol. Rel. & L. Poems (1903) 128/175 The elder broþer hade a Sonne to clerke, Well of fyftene wynter of age. 1509 Barclay Shyp of Folys (1874) I. 42 An hundreth wynter [ed. 1570 winters]. 1522 World & Child (facs.) A iij b, Now I am .xix. wynter olde. |
| c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 1211 Wintres forð-wexen on ysaac. 13.. Cursor M. 20832 (Edin.) Þis leuedi..liuid bot winteris .vij. and .ix. c 1380 Wyclif Sel. Wks. III. 502 Holy Kirke hafs ben in erroure mony hundred wynters. c 1400 St. Alexius (Cotton) 261 A gayne xvij wyntersende. 1470–85 Malory Arthur x. xxxiii. 467 Thus Anglydes endured yeres and wynters tyl Alysander was bygge and stronge. 1593 Shakes. Rich. II, i. iii. 260 What is sixe Winters, they are quickely gone? 1612 Two Noble K. v. i. 114, I knew a man Of eightie winters. 1784 Cowper Tiroc. 210 Ere sixteen winters old. 1833 Tennyson Pal. Art 139 A hundred winters snowed upon his breast. |
| c 1400 St. Jer. 15 Tokens 22 In þilk age he schal arise þat god was inne ded, Of litel more þan xxxti wyntren. |
| sing. c 1412 Hoccleve De Reg. Princ. 5217 The ryot þat haþ ben with-in þis lande..many a wyntres space. c 1460 J. Metham Wks. (1916) 84 Jon Metham..tranlatyd yt in-to Englysch the xxvti wyntyr off hys age. |
3. attrib. passing into adj. a. = Of, pertaining to, or characteristic of winter; adapted or appropriate to, used or occupied in, winter; existing, appearing, active, flourishing, or performed in winter.
(
a) of natural phenomena, animals, plants, etc.
| a 1000 Phœnix 18 Ne wearm weder ne winterscur. 1390 Gower Conf. I. 35 The stormy wynter shoures. c 1400 Laud Troy Bk. 3576 Wyntir-wedur. 1576–7 Wills & Inv. Durham (Surtees) II. 318, v whyes, of iiij yeres olde, vj winter whies, 18l. 1585 Higins Junius' Nomencl. 55/2 Alcedo, alcyon,..a winter birde commonly called the kings fisher. 1596 Shakes. Tam. Shr. iv. iii. 110 Thou Flea, thou Nit, thou winter cricket thou. 1600 Knaresb. Wills (Surtees) I. 223, I geve to Anne..one old winter stocke of bees. 1600 Shakes. A.Y.L. ii. vii. 174 Blow, blow, thou winter winde. 1637 Rutherford Let. to R. Stuart 17 June, The winter-well will goe dry again in summer. 1639 J. Clarke Parœm. 263 Winter thunder, is old mens wonder. 1653 Walton Angler To Rdr. A 7, Winter-flies, all Anglers know,..are as useful as an Almanack out of date. 1717 Pope Iliad x. 507 His Coursers..white as Winter-Snow. 1717 Prior Alma ii. 534 Cast your Eye By Night upon a Winter-Sky. 1751 Young Nt. Th. vii. 34 Repelling Winter Blasts with Mud and Straw. 1773 G. White Selborne, To Pennant 9 Nov., The..stock-dove..seldom appearing till towards the end of November; is usually the latest winter-bird of passage. 1813 Scott Rokeby iii. xxviii, The rose..shall bloom in winter snow, Ere we two meet again. 1850 Beck's Florist 115 A pleasing and interesting winter-tree is the Glastonbury Thorn. 1856 Kane Arctic Expl. I. xx. 244 The most solid winter-ice is open here and there. 1869 H. F. Tozer Highl. Turkey II. 136 A..bridge..across the bed of a winter torrent. 1869 Tennyson Passing of Arthur 221 The winter moon, Brightening the skirts of a long cloud. |
(
b) of clothing, provisions, etc., accommodation (also
winter-house,
winter quarters); of localities in their winter state and things serviceable in winter.
| c 893 ælfred Oros. iv. viii, Þæt he buton sorᵹe mehte on þæm wintersetle ᵹewunian. a 1000 Phœnix 250 Forst & snaw..eorþan þeccað winterᵹewædum. c 1000 Rectitudines ix. (Liebermann 450), viii pund cornes to mete, i sceap oððe iii p.' to wintersufle. 1395 Cartular. Abb. de Whiteby (Surtees 1881) II. 568 De wynterfare..xxvis. De lentynfare..xi li. xs. iid. De halfare..xviiis. ? c 1400 Lydg. æsop's Fab. iii. 98 The lawe dide hym compelle..his wynter flees to selle. c 1440 Pallad. on Husb. i. 331 The wintir wonyng. 1473 Rental Bk. Cupar-Angus (1879) I. 188 Pasture..reseruyt to the abbay, safe the wynter pastur. 1483 Cath. Angl. 420/1 A Wyntir haule, hibernium, hibernaculum. 1538 Elyot Dict., Tablinum, was a wynter parlour, wherein were painted tables and bokes of stories. 1568 Knollys in Cal. Scott. Pap. (1900) II. 513 Unprovided of sufficient wynter garments. 1575 Wills & Inv. N.C. (Surtees 1835) I. 406 Another Close for Winter ground. 1593 Shakes. Lucr. 1218 As winter meads when sun doth melt their snow. 1628 May Virg. Georg. i. 15 Some sit up late at winter-fires. 1628 F. Drake World Encompassed 64 Notwithstanding it was in the height of Summer..we could..haue beene contented to haue kept about vs still our Winter clothes. 1653 Walton Angler xii. 222 A winter bait for a Roch. 1675 H. Woolley Gentlew. Comp. 215 Provide your Winter-Butter and Cheese in the Summer. 1694 Motteux Rabelais iv. xxiv. 102 Have some winter Boots made of it, they'le never take in a drop of Water. 1713 C'tess of Winchilsea Misc. Poems 36 Birds have dropt their Winter-plumes. 1727 Gay Begg. Op. iii. vi. 46 Black Velvet Scarfs..are a handsome Winter-wear. 1729 Fenton in Waller's Wks. Observ. p. xxxiv, When the Sun retir'd..to the six Winter-Signs of the Zodiac; short'ning the days. 1735 Somerville Chase iii. 97 So Ships in Winter-Seas..defy the Storm. 1759 G. Clough Let. 30 Sept. in Essex Inst. Hist. Coll. (1861) III. 104/1 Cold weather..will make us..put on our Winter Clothing. 1760, 1791 Winter-lodge [see hibernaculum 3, hibernacle]. 1818 Scott Rob Roy xxvi, Sic as folk tell ower at a winter-ingle. 1819 Keats Eve of St. Mark 77 The warm angled winter-screen. 1838 Workwoman's Guide in Walkley & Foster Crinolines & Crimping Irons (1978) xi. 165 Care should be taken to separate..winter clothing from that worn in summer. 1842 W. F. Ainsworth Trav. Asia Minor II. 394 The winter road..takes the longer portion of valley. 1842 Loudon Suburban Hort. 677 [Celery] is..cultivated as a winter salad. 1844 H. Stephens Bk. Farm II. 484 To harrow it before cross-ploughing the winter-furrow. 1847 W. C. L. Martin Ox 35/2 After being kept on winter-fodder, they are turned out to graze in the spring. 1850 Tennyson In Mem. xxx, The winds..We heard them sweep the winter land. 1855 Orr's Circ. Sci., Inorg. Nat. 38 A glacier..is the outlet of..vast reservoirs of snow, being a prolongation of the winter-world above. 1870 E. G. E. Ward Jrnl. 9 Nov. in D. P. Carew Many Years, Many Girls (1967) i. 33, I have been able to-day to send my children in England some winter clothes. 1874 Geo. Eliot Let. 16 June (1956) VI. 57 The cold winds..have forced us to put on winter clothing. 1876 C. M. Yonge Three Brides I. iii. 35 Her hair and pretty Parisian winter dress arranged to perfection. 1892 Daily News 12 Dec. 1/2 (Advt.), Gentlemen's undervests. Winter weight, 32 in. to 48 in. chests. 1904 Bridges Demeter i. 282, I think he watch'd a summer-butterfly Creep out all crumpled from his winter-case. 1911 J. Ward Roman Era Brit. iv. 77 There was a ‘winter-room’ on the south side. 1934 G. B. Shaw On Rocks ii. 226 There is a generous fire in the grate; and the visitors wear winter clothes. 1940 L. I. Wilder Long Winter ix. 73 They dressed carefully in their woolen winter dresses. 1979 T. Barling Olympic Sleeper xi. 138 He was warm in his winterweight pin⁓striped suit. 1984 W. Beechey Rich Mrs. Robinson xii. 89 He needs some winter vests badly. |
(
c) of times and seasons. (See also winter-day, -tide, -time.)
| a 1000 Genesis 370, & moste [ic] ane tid ute weorþan, wesan ane winterstunde. 1390 Gower Conf. I. 81 The blake wynter nyht. c 1400 Brut i. 194 He wolde nouȝt abide in Scotland in wynter seson. 1508 Dunbar Tua Mariit Wemen 77 The lang winter nicht. 1559 W. Cuningham Cosmogr. Glasse 34 The wynter tropike or circle of retorning from the South. 1577 Googe Heresbach's Husb. i. 11 Thinges doone..in the Winter morninges. Ibid. 41 The Male [Hemp]..is made vp in bundels to be knockt and shaled in Winter euenynges. 1707 Freind Peterborow's Cond. Sp. 223 Marching in the stony Mountains, and in a Winter-season. 1825 Hook Sayings Ser. ii. I. Man of many Friends 156 The rosy May, though fashionably a winter month, led on the smiling summer of nature, and June..was fast approaching. 1869 Lowell (title of poem), A Winter Evening Hymn to my Fire. a 1889 G. M. Hopkins in Dublin Rev. (1920) July–Sept. 46 They came from the south, Where winter-while is all forgot. |
(
d) of actions or conditions.
| a 1310 in Wright Lyric P. xiii. 43 A-way is huere wynter wo. 1616 Surfl. & Markh. Country Farm v. xviii. 555 In October you shall giue it the fourth ardor or earing, which is called Winter-ridging. 1625 Bacon Ess., Prophecies (Arb.) 537 They ought..to serue, but for Winter Talke, by the Fire side. 1677 Hubbard Pres. St. New-Eng. (1865) I. 165 Some of the stoutest of the Narhagansets that had escaped the Winter-brunt. a 1700 Evelyn Diary 14 Nov. 1666, I went my winter circle thro' my district. 1711 Swift Cond. Allies 52 Eight Thousand Men, for whose Winter Campaign the Queen was willing to give forty Thousand Pounds. 1725 Winter pruning [see summer n.1 4 a (e)]. 1726–46 Thomson Winter 573 Thus in some deep retirement would I pass The winter-glooms with friends of pliant soul. 1809 Phil. Trans. XCIX. 317 That very common..disease of our climate, the winter cough. 1836–9 M. Hall in Todd's Cycl. Anat. II. 768/2 The winter-sleep and the summer-sleep of hibernating animals. 1842 Dickens Amer. Notes xv, [The emigrants] had had a long winter-passage out. 1934 Winter cruise [see front-pager s.v. front n. (and a.) 14]. 1976 Liverpool Echo 6 Dec. 7/1 Aznar Line are having a record breaking season with their winter cruises out of Liverpool. |
(
e) with agent-nouns or other descriptive designations.
| 1654 G. Goddard in T. Burton's Diary (1828) I. Introd. p. lxxviii, Some part of the sea-forces were already struck off, and the winter-guard reduced. 1783 Crabbe Village i. 201 When he tends the sheep, His winter-charge. 1854 Poultry Chron. I. 363 The Cochins..proved themselves the best possible ‘winter-layers’. |
b. The possessive
winter's is similarly used, chiefly with
day,
night,
morning,
evening.
winter's tale: see
winter-tale in 5.
| 835 Charter in O.E. Texts 449 Ᵹif hi wintres deᵹ sie. 1390 Gower Conf. II. 327 Sche..halt hir clos the wyntres day. c 1430 Lydg. Min. Poems (Percy Soc.) 212 The coold wynterys nyght. 1577 Harrison England i. xiii. 37 b/2 in Holinshed, Blewe claye..(which hardlye drinketh vppe the winters water in long season). a 1593 Marlowe & Nashe Dido iii. iii, Who would not vndergoe all kind of toyle, To be well stor'd with such a winter's tale? 1593 Shakes. 3 Hen. VI, v. v. 25 Let æsop fable in a Winters Night. 1600 ― A.Y.L. ii. i. 7 The..churlish chiding of the winters winde. 1605 ― Macb. iii. iv. 65 O, these flawes and starts..would well become A womans story, at a Winters fire. 1654 Whitlock Zootomia 300 A pretty upshot of all ambitious Designes..to be made at length a Winters Tale, and Chimney-corner Discourse. 1795 Cowper Pairing Time Anticipated 9 It chanced then on a winter's day, But warm, and bright, and calm as May. 1796 Grose Dict. Vulgar T. (ed. 3) s.v., He is like a winter's day, short and dirty. |
c. Applied to autumn-sown crops that stand through the winter; also to fruits that ripen late, or keep well until or during winter;
spec. in names of late-ripening apples, pears, etc. (See also 5 b.)
| 1398 Trevisa Barth. De P.R. xvii. cxv. (Add. MS. 27944), Barliche hatte Ordeum..Þis corn we clepith wynter bore. 1398 Winter seede [see summer n.1 4 c]. 1530 Palsgr. 289/2 Wynter frute, fruit de yuer. 1573–80 Tusser Husb. (1878) 40 Winter fruit gather when Mihel is past. 1577 Googe Heresbach's Husb. i. 28 Winter Barley..is to be sowed in September. 1609 Dekker Ravens Almanack B 3 b, When winter plomes are ripe and ready to be gathered. 1676 Worlidge Cyder 170 Bings-pear, Winter-Poppering, Thorn-pear [etc.] are all very good Winter-pears. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg. i. 300 When Astrea's Ballance, hung on high, Betwixt the Nights and Days divides the Sky, Then..sow your Winter Grain. 1707 Mortimer Husb., Kalendar Jan., Apples... Winter Queenings,..Winter Pearmain... Pears. Winter Musk,..Winter Norwich,..Winter Burgamot, Winter Bon-Chrestien. 1762 Mills Syst. Pract. Husb. I. 466 The gray and other large winter peas. 1844 H. Stephens Bk. Farm II. 514 The state of the winter-wheat depends entirely on the sort of weather it had to encounter in winter and early spring. 1870 Yeats Nat. Hist. Comm. 63 In Egypt, wheat is a winter crop. 1939 WPA Guide to Florida (Federal Writers' Project) i. 7 The traveler..may detour inland to discover the hidden winter-vegetable kingdom on the muck lands. |
d. In figurative applications (
cf. 1 c);
† in
quots. 1593, 1682
= old, aged.
| 1593 Shakes. 2 Hen. VI, v. iii. 2 Salisbury,..That Winter Lyon, who in rage forgets Aged contusions. 1651 N. Bacon Disc. Govt. Eng. ii. i. 6 The worst of his fate was, to live to his Winter age. 1682 Otway Venice Preserved iii. ii. 34 That mortify'd old wither'd Winter Rogue. 1709 Pope Jan. & May 104 The tasteless, dry embrace Of a stale virgin with a winter face. 1745 Young Nt. Th. ix. 410 The Crown of Manhood is a Winter-Joy; An Evergreen, that..blossoms in the Rigour of our Fate. |
4. Comb.: objective, as
winter-boding,
winter-loving adjs.; indirect objective, as
winter-like,
winter-proof,
winter-verging adjs.; instrumental, as
winter-beaten,
winter-blasted,
winter-bound,
winter-chilled,
winter-heavy,
winter-left,
winter-locked,
winter-shaken,
winter-starved,
winter-swollen,
winter-thin,
winter-wasted,
winter-wearied,
winter-weary,
winter-weighed,
winter-withered,
winter-worn pa. pples. and
adjs.; similative, as
winter-blue,
winter-chill,
winter-cold,
winter-seeming,
winter-visaged,
winter-white adjs.; ‘in or during winter’, as
winter-blooming,
winter-fattened,
winter-felled,
winter-flowering,
winter-hardy,
winter-made,
winter-pruned,
winter-sown,
winter-standing pples. and
adjs.;
winter-cut vb.; appositive, as
winter-spring.
| 1579 Spenser Sheph. Cal. Jan., Argt., He compareth his carefull case to the sadde season of the yeare,..and to his owne *winterbeaten flocke. |
| 1827 Clare Sheph. Cal. 23 Crab, hip and *winter-bitten sloe. |
| 1597 Drayton Heroic. Ep., Rosamond 40 The cold badge of *winter-blasted haires. 1632 Lithgow Trav. ii. 71 A roofe to my Winter-blasted lodging. |
| a 1847 Eliza Cook Song of Dying Old Man vi, The spring-flower clinging round the *winter-blighted tree. |
| 1855 Poultry Chron. III. 303 Cyclamen (especially the *winter-blooming kind) may be sheltered. |
| 1936 R. Frost Let. 6 Feb. (1964) 270 And Sirius is a *winterbluegreen star. 1958 J. W. Day Lady Houston xv. 225 Never had..the winter-blue woods of Kimbolton or the generous warmth of Brampton Park..beckoned more seductively. |
| 1892 W. Watson Poems, Autumn 36 And spectral seem thy *winter-boding trees. |
| 1791 Burns Lovely Davies ii, As the wretch looks o'er Siberia's shore, When *winter-bound the wave is. 1904 Phillips Oppenheim Betrayal xxi. 179 A country silent and winterbound. |
| 1605 Sylvester Du Bartas ii. iii. iv. Captains 482 My flesh (too-*Winter-chill) My spirit's small sparkles doth extinguish still. |
| 1669 Worlidge Syst. Agric. vi. 72 In the Spring yielding a reviving Cordial to your *Winter-chilled spirit. |
| 1944 E. Sitwell Green Song 7 Henry thought me *winter-cold When to keep his love I turned from him as the world Turns from the sun. |
| 1784 G. White Selborne, To Pennant ix, A very large fall of timber, consisting of about one thousand oaks, has been cut... These trees..were *winter-cut, viz. in February and March. |
| 1840 J. Buel Farmer's Comp. 164 English beef and mutton..is mostly *winter-fattened..upon roots and straw. |
| 1742 Ellis Timber-Tree II. 13 From whence they infer, that the worm can't breed so soon in a Summer-fell'd Tree, as in a *Winter-fell'd one. 1804 Phil. Trans. XCV. 89 This superiority in winter-felled wood. |
| 1794 *Winter-flowering [see aconite 3]. 1872 Routledge's Ev. Boy's Ann. 101/2 Winter-flowering plants. |
| 1960 Farmer & Stockbreeder 5 Jan. 43/1 We may..be given a more *winter-hardy, leafier kale. 1975 Daily Colonist (Victoria, B.C.) 20 July 22/7 As it is not winter-hardy here, it is commonly grown as an annual. |
| 1920 D. H. Lawrence Women in Love xxix. 435 This was an old world she was still journeying through, *winter-heavy and dreary. |
| 1955 S. Spender Coll. Poems 1928–53 ix. 173 Its vermilion seems A Red Admiral's wing, with veins Of lichen and rust, an underwing Of *winter-left leaves. |
| 1611 Speed Theat. Gt. Brit. xli. 79 *Winter-like dispositions of weather. 1740 T. Smith Jrnl. (1849) 268, I believe no man ever knew so winter⁓like a spell so early in the year. |
| 1926 S. Leslie Cantab xv. 183 He sobbed like a *winter-locked river hastening over the weir at the first warmth of spring. 1946 Dylan Thomas Deaths & Entrances 34 Two proud, blacked brothers cry, Winter-locked side by side. |
| 1800 J. Hurdis Fav. Village 134 The *winter-loving moss. |
| 1830 Cumbld. Farm Rep. 58 in Libr. Usef. Knowl., Husb. III, The manure made in summer..is always of better quality than *winter-made dung. |
| 1830 Doyle in W. J. Fitz-Patrick Life (1880) II. 221, I..hope I am now *winter-proof. |
| 1842 Loudon Suburban Hort. 459 Canes *winter-pruned, or cut back. |
| a 1631 Donne Loves Alchymie 12 A *winter-seeming summers night. |
| 1605 Sylvester Du Bartas ii. iii. i. Vocation 483 Peasants *Winter-shaken. 1605 R. R. Commend. Poem in Sylvester's Wks., Winter-shaken Leaues. |
| 1707 Mortimer Husb. 316 *Winter sown Seed. 1960 Farmer & Stockbreeder 15 Mar. 141/3 Tri-Farmon 41 effectively controls the widest possible range of weeds in winter and spring-sown wheat. |
| 1888 W. D. Hay Blood vii. 29 Although it was so late in the *winter-spring season, the weather was wild and wintry. 1967 Oceanogr. & Marine Biol. XVI. 409 The ‘Atlanto-Scandian’ winter-spring spawning stocks. |
| 1598 R. Grenewey Tacitus, Ann. ii. vi. (1622) 40 The souldiers were brought backe to their *winter-standing camps. |
| 1581 Sidney Apol. Poetrie (Arb.) 68 Figures and flowers, extreamelie *winter-starued. 1597 Drayton Heroic. Ep., Henry to Rosamond 101 The hungry winter-starued earth. 1603 H. Crosse Vertues Commw. (1878) 92 A number of poore winterstarued people. |
| 1849 Rock Ch. Fathers II. 465 Did the good man..wade through the *winter-swollen brook? |
| 1820 Keats Fancy 57 The snake all *winter-thin Cast on sunny bank its skin. |
| 1824 T. Fenby To a Redbreast v, The *winter-verging autumn morn. |
| 1898 Meredith Odes Fr. Hist. 87 The maimed, Torn, tortured, *winter-visaged. |
| 1885 H. Tennyson in Macm. Mag. Mar. 345 As we fare..forth..From out our *winter-wasted Northern Isle. |
| 1892 J. G. Whittier At Sundown 58 This stormy interlude Gives to our *winter-wearied hearts a reason For trustful gratitude. 1917 D. H. Lawrence Look! we have come Through! 160 We who are winter-weary in the winter of the world. |
| 1866 J. G. Whittier Snow-Bound 46 And woodland paths that wound between Snow drooping pine-boughs *winter-weighed. |
| 1915 E. Sitwell Mother 16 Her ice-cold breast was *winter-white. |
| 1906 Hardy Dynasts ii. i. vi, *Winter-whitened bones. |
| 1592 Daniel Delia xxx[viii], Her glas..then presents her *winter-withered hew. |
| 1872 Geo. Eliot Middlem. xxxvii, The common jealousy of a *winter-worn husband. |
| a 1560 T. Phaer æneid viii. (1562) B b iij, Three *winter-wrested showres. |
5. a. Special
Combs.:
winter annual (see
quot. 1900);
winter bud Zool., a statoblast (formed at the approach of, or quiescent during, winter);
winter carnival Canad., ‘an organized winter social activity featuring winter sports, beauty contests, ice-sculpture, etc.’ (
Dict. Canadianisms);
winter-clad a., clothed warmly for the winter;
† winter-close v., trans. to shut close against the cold of winter;
winter coat, (
a) the coat of an animal in winter, where this differs from that in summer; (
b) a (woman's) coat suitable for winter weather;
winter count, a pictorial record or chronicle of the events of a year, kept by a N. American Indian people;
winter country N.Z., land where livestock can be wintered;
winter eggs = winter ova;
winter garden, (
a) a garden of plants that flourish in winter, as evergreens; (
b) a greenhouse or conservatory in which plants are kept flourishing in winter; (
c) a building used for concerts, plays, dances, etc., at a seaside resort;
winter-hained a. [
hain v.
1], of pasture, preserved from grazing during the winter; so
winter-haining vbl. n.;
winter-killed pa. pple. and a. (
U.S.), killed or blasted by the cold of winter: said
esp. of grain or other crops; so
winter-killing; also
winter-kill v. intr., to become winter-killed;
trans., to make winter-killed; also
absol. and
winter-kill n.;
winter-long a., as (tediously) long as winter;
adv., through a whole winter;
winter-love, cold or conventional love;
winter oil, edible oil that remains clear at low temperatures owing to the removal of constituents that would have caused congelation or precipitation;
winter-old a., that has lasted since the beginning of winter;
Winter Olympic Games,
Winter Olympics, international competitive winter sports held under the auspices of the International Olympic Committee, usually every four years;
winter ova, eggs produced by certain invertebrates at the approach of winter (
cf. summer ova s.v. summer n.1 6);
winter packet Canad. (
Obs. exc. Hist.), a boat or land party carrying mail in winter-time between trading posts; the mail itself;
winter-piece [
piece n. 17 b, d], a picture or description of a winter scene;
winter-pride, the condition of being winter-proud;
winter-proud a., (of wheat or other crops) too luxuriant in winter;
winter-rig v. (now
dial.),
trans. to plough (land) in ridges and lay it fallow for the winter (
cf. winter-fallow);
winter road Canad., a road or a route used in winter when the ground is frozen or there is snow;
winter-rot [
rot n.1 2], a disease incident to sheep in the winter;
† winter-stall, a hive in which bees are kept during the winter;
† winter story,
tale, an idle tale (also
winter's tale: see 3 b);
Winter War (also with small initials), the war between the
U.S.S.R. and Finland in 1939–40;
winter woollies: see
woolly n. 1.
| 1900 B. D. Jackson Gloss. Bot. Terms 290/2 *Winter-annual, a plant which germinates in autumn, and living through the winter, fruits and dies. 1977 J. L. Harper Population Biol. Plants xviii. 547 A single population [of Papaver dubium] includes winter annuals and spring annuals. |
| 1888 Rolleston & Jackson Anim. Life 709 The Phylactolaemata [among Polyzoa] also reproduce by statoblasts or *winter buds. |
| 1884 Outing (U.S.) Feb. 400/2 The *winter carnival at Montreal, which was so successfully inaugurated last year, will open on February 4. 1973 Globe & Mail (Toronto) 13 Jan. 33/1 Most winter carnivals in Ontario rely less heavily on the snowmobile for their fun weekends. |
| 1847 Tennyson Princess ii. 105 The man; Tattoo'd or woaded, *winter-clad in skins. |
| c 1440 Pallad. on Husb. i. 507 *Winter close hit al To holde out colde. |
| 1894 G. Armatage Horse v. 73 A horse with his natural *winter coat. 1920 [see bear fur s.v. bear n.1 9]. 1956 R. Macaulay Towers of Trebizond viii. 78 The camel..was very smooth, having just shed its winter coat. 1982 C. Fremlin Parasite Person xix. 128 Helen felt the warmth of the sun..through her thick winter coat. |
| 1895 W. J. Hoffman Beginnings of Writing 35 These chronological records are designated ‘*winter counts’, as each event covers that period of time between the end of one summer and the beginning of the next. |
| 1898 Morris Austral English 513/1 *Winter country, in New Zealand (South Island), land so far unaffected by snow that stock is wintered on it. 1912 A. Wall Century N.Z.'s Praise 80 Good winter-country, where sweet grasses grow. 1949 P. Newton High Country Days 197 Safe country which is saved for the winter is ‘winter country’. |
| 1872 H. C. Bastian Begin. Life II. 514 The so-called ‘*winter-eggs’ of the beautiful..Rotifer..Hydatina senta. |
| 1712 Addison Spect. No. 477 ¶1 A *Winter Garden, which would consist of such Trees only as never cast their Leaves. 1762 Kames Elem. Crit. xxiv. (1774) 448 In a cold country, the capital object should be a winter-garden, open to the sun, sheltered from wind, dry under foot, and having the appearance of summer by variety of evergreens. 1783 T. Blaikie Diary of Scotch Gardener (1931) 179 The winter Garden adjoining to the Hott houses, was more Beautifull than Elegant. 1889 Gunter That Frenchman xvi. 197 The great conservatory, or winter garden, as it is called in that country, and without which no grand Russian house is complete. 1896 Ward & Lock's Illustr. Guide Bournemouth etc. 22 Not far from the pier entrance is the Winter Garden and Pavilion. 1951 Dict. Gardening (R. Hort. Soc.) IV. 2282/2 The Winter Garden is usually of sufficient size to allow the central part of the interior being laid out in walks and large beds. 1977 Lancs. Life Nov. 81/1 The Palace incorporated a winter garden from which the stage could be seen without spectators needing to go through into the auditorium. |
| 1886 C. Scott Sheep-farming 86 To have in reserve a *winter-hained old pasture, which the ewes and lambs can fall back on. |
| 1667–8 Act 19–20 Chas. II, c. 8 §10 The time of the *Winter heyning (that is to say) from the Eleventh day of November to the Three and twentieth day of Aprill. 1743 R. Maxwell Sel. Trans. Agric. Scot. 37 The Dung of these [sheep] in Summer, with Winter-haining, will keep the Ground in good Heart. |
| 1845 Farmers' Cabinet 15 Feb. 202/2 It is not so hardy as some varieties: it is more subject to *winter-kill. 1846 E. Emmons Agric. N.Y. I. 281 The grain very rarely winter-kills. 1849 Ex. Doc. 31st U.S. Congress 1 Sess. House No. 5. ii. 653 The..snow which lies upon the ground nearly six months in the year would be likely to ‘winter-kill’ it. 1918 S. S. Visher Geogr. S. Dakota 56 Red clover is not a success..largely because it winter-kills. 1945 Ecol. Monogr. XV. 343 (heading) Limnological conditions in ice-covered lakes, especially as related to winter-kill of fish. 1977 Chicago Tribune 2 Oct. xi. 1/4 High nitrogen fertilizer..would only promote late growth that would winterkill. 1980 Northeast Woods & Waters Dec. 18/1 Last year's rate of winterkill was lower than usual because of the relatively mild weather conditions. |
| 1817 S. Brown Western Gaz. 49 That wheat..never gets *winter-killed or smutty. 1868 Rep. U.S. Comm. Agric. (1869) 405 The White Mediterranean and Sandomirka wheats were badly winter-killed. |
| 1845 Farmers' Cabinet 15 Jan. 195/1 This blight is not to be confounded with *winter-killing. 1868 Rep. U.S. Comm. Agric. (1869) 17 The early reports..were generally favorable, and noted by the absence of winter-killing. |
| c 1325 Lai le Freine 143 Al the *winter-long night. 1876 Morris æneids iv. 193 How winter-long between them there the sweets of sloth they nursed. |
| 1636 B. Jonson Discov., Jactura vitæ, What a deale of cold busines doth a man mis-spend the better part of life in! in scattering complements, tendring visits,..making a little *winter-love in a darke corner. |
| 1894 C. R. A. Wright Animal & Veg. Oils xi. 257 Oils that have been thus treated are sometimes termed ‘*winter oils’. 1920, 1939 Winter oil [see demargarinated a.]. 1970 T. J. Weiss Food Oils iii. 59 The solid portion of the oil which had set up in storage tanks in the winter at 40°–42° F..was settled out and removed, leaving an oil which would remain clear when chilled. Cottonseed oils were thus divided into summer and winter oils. |
| 1897 tr. Nansen's Farthest North II. v. 194 Ice which can hardly be *winter-old, or at any rate has been formed since last summer. |
| [1928 Times 17 Feb. 6/4 The usual clean crisp snow has given place to an earthy slush, and as a result the second celebration of a Winter Olympiad has come to an abrupt standstill.] 1932 Times 1 Feb. 7/4 A thaw which has set in threatens to destroy..the third *winter Olympic Games. 1936 Times 27 Jan. 5/1 The Lake Placid bob-run..provided some of the most exciting spectacles at the 1932 Winter Olympics. 1956 Times 6 Jan. 9/5 In 1948..I won a bronze medal in the Winter Olympic Games. 1981 ‘E. Lathen’ Going for Gold i. 11 It took the Winter Olympics to keep him in the continental United States in February. |
| 1852 Zoologist X. 3406 He pointed out the difference between the ordinary ova and those called ‘*winter ova’, which last he proposed to call ephippial ova. 1877 [see summer ova s.v. summer n.1 6]. 1888 Rolleston & Jackson Anim. Life 634 The ova [of Rotifers] are of three kinds, small male ova, thin-shelled summer ova, and thick-shelled winter or, better, resting ova. |
| 1831 E. Smith Let. 25 Nov. in Champlain Soc. Publ. (1938) XXIV. 79 Our *Winter Packet being now preparing to Travell on to your Quarter, I will not let it go without acknowleging the receipt of your friendly epistile. 1971 J. McDougall Parsons on Plains xi. 92 We saw the flicker of a campfire. We found that it was the one winter packet from the east on its way to Edmonton. |
| 1666 Pepys Diary 17 July, To agree with..(the Dutch paynter..) for a *winter piece of snow. 1697 Addison Ess. Virgil's Georgics ¶12 The Scythian Winter-piece appears so very cold and bleak to the Eye, that a Man can scarce look on it without shivering. 1797 Holcroft tr. Stolberg's Trav. (ed. 2) II. xlii. 70 The third [painting] is a winter piece. |
| a 1722 Lisle Husb. (1757) 93 Sow old wheat at the first and earliest sowing, if you fear *winter-pride. |
| 1601 Holland Pliny xvii. ii. I. 501 When either corne is *winter-prowd, or other plants put forth and bud too earely, by reason of the mild and warme aire. 1799 J. Robertson Agric. Perth 146 When the wheat is winter-proud, which commonly happens after a mild season.., that luxuriance..ought to be checked by eating it down with sheep. 1846 J. Baxter Libr. Pract. Agric. (ed. 4) II. 397 There is danger of the crop running to straw, or becoming what is called winter-proud. |
| 1661 M. Stevenson Twelve Months 39 At the end of this moneth [August] begin to *winter-rig all fruitful soyls. |
| 1801 A. Mackenzie Voy. from Montreal vi. 84 One of the natives who followed us, called it the *Winter Road River. 1808 H. Gray Lett. from Canada (1809) 254 The country people who first form the winter roads on the snow, direct their Carioles by the nearest course where the snow is most level; and they go in as straight a line as possible, to the place where they are destined. 1916 Yukon Territory 194 In the summer of 1902 the government built a winter road between Dawson and Whitehorse, a distance of approximately 333 miles. 1971 Country Life 24 June 1572/1 We had been told to follow a path until it joined a ‘winter road’ which would in turn lead us to the marsh. 1973 Kingston (Ontario) Whig-Standard 26 Jan. 7/2 The winter road over the ice is about four lanes wide and is ‘brushed’ with evergreens at the sides as a guide during swirling snow storms. 1979 A. M. Tizzard On Sloping Ground ix. 130 The bay would be frozen over and there was always a good winter road across Twillingate Island. |
| 1577 Googe Heresbach's Husb. iii. 140 Against the *winter rotte, or hunger rotte, you must prouide to feede them [sc. sheep] at home in Cratches. |
| c 1275 xi Pains of Hell 40 in O.E. Misc. 148 Þickure hi hongeþ..Þan don been in *wynterstal. 1587–8 Wills & Inv. Durh. (Surtees) II. 312, iij wynter stales of bees. 1824 [see stall n.4]. |
| 1659 Bp. Walton Consid. Considered 239 A mere *winter-story without any ground or reason. |
| 1556 Olde Antichrist 7 According to olde wiues fables and *winter tales. 1637 C. Dow Answ. to H. Burton 120 b, Such winter tales as it were too great a mispence of time and words to refute them. |
| 1942 F. Owen in W. P. & Z. Coates Soviet-Finnish Campaign p. i, What about the Finns? In the *Winter War they gained a deserved fame for valour and military skill. 1957 Times Lit. Suppl. 11 Oct. 603/2 The so-called ‘Winter War’, resulting from the Soviet attack on Finland in November, 1939, and ending with the Finnish surrender of March, 1940. 1971 W. H. McNeill in A. Bullock 20th Century 49/2 The Finns' success in holding the Russians at bay for the long weeks of the so-called ‘winter war’ (1939–40). 1973 J. Fleming You won't let me Finish x. 82 The cook came here during the Winter War. |
b. In names of animals and plants that are active or flourish in winter or in the winter half of the year (often rendering L.
hiemalis as a specific name), or of late-ripening fruits (
cf. 3 c):
winter-bloom, (
a) a late-flowering species of
Azalea; (
b) the American witch-hazel,
Hamamelis virginica, which blossoms late in autumn and ripens its fruit the following year;
winter bunting, the snow bunting (see
bunting n.1 1);
winter clover, the partridge-berry,
Mitchella repens;
winter-crack (see
quot. 1898);
winter daffodil, a late-blooming yellow-flowered amaryllid,
Sternbergia lutea, cultivated in gardens;
winter duck, (
a) the pintail duck (see
pintail 2); (
b) in
U.S., the long-tailed duck,
Harelda glacialis;
winter falcon, the young of the red-shouldered buzzard,
Buteo lineatus;
winter finch, a N. American species of finch (see
quot.);
winter flounder (see
quot.);
winter-flower, (
a)
gen. a flower blooming in winter; (
b)
spec. the early-blooming Japan allspice,
Chimonanthus fragrans [a rendering of the generic name];
† winter gillyflower, the wallflower (see
quot. 1597);
winter gnat = winter midge;
winter grape, an American species of grape-vine,
Vitis cordifolia;
winter-gull, any species of gull which appears in winter in a particular locality, as the common gull, the black-headed gull, or the herring-gull;
winter hawk, the red-shouldered buzzard (
cf. winter falcon);
winter heath (see
quot.);
winter-mew = winter-gull;
winter midge (see
quot.);
winter-moth, any of various geometer moths which come forth in winter,
esp. Cheimatobia brumata;
winter peach, the fruit of a peach-tree cultivated in a greenhouse and fruiting during autumn or winter;
winter-pick [?
pick v.
1 5], a local name for the sloe when mellowed by frost, used for making a rustic wine;
winter queening, a late-ripening variety of apple, which keeps well through the winter;
winter redbird local, the cardinal grosbeak,
Cardinalis virginianus, which winters in some parts of N. America (
cf. summer redbird s.v. summer n.1 6 b);
winter rocket, the common winter-cress,
Barbarea vulgaris (see
rocket n.2 3);
winter rose, (
a) a rose blooming in winter; (
b) ? the Christmas rose,
Helleborus niger;
winter-shad, the mud-shad,
Dorosoma copedianum;
winter sleeper, an animal that hibernates;
winter snipe, the purple sandpiper or rock-snipe,
Tringa striata or
maritima (
cf. summer snipe s.v. summer n.1 6 b);
winter squash, a species of pumpkin,
Cucurbita maxima (
cf. summer squash s.v. summer n.1 6 b);
winter strawberry, the strawberry-tree
= arbutus 1;
winter-sweet, (
a)
= winter sweet marjoram (see
marjoram); (
b) a shrub,
Chimonanthus præcox, of the family Calycanthaceæ, native to China and bearing pale yellow fragrant flowers in winter before the leaves appear;
winter teal, the green-winged teal (see
teal 2):
cf. summer teal s.v. summer n.1 6 b;
winter-thorn, a late-ripening variety of pear;
winter-weed, any one of various small weeds which survive and flourish in winter;
esp. the ivy-leaved and field speedwells,
Veronica hederæfolia and
V. agrestis. See also
winter aconite,
heliotrope,
hellebore,
hemp,
marjoram,
rape (
n.5),
savory,
wagtail,
wren1.
| 1760 J. Lee Introd. Bot. App. 332 *Winter Bloom. Azalea. 1884 Miller Plant-n., Hamamelis virginica, American Witch-Hazel,..Winter-bloom. |
| 1815 Stephens in Shaw Gen. Zool. IX. 367 *Winter Bunting (Emberiza hyemalis). |
| 1884 Miller Plant-n., Mitchella repens, Chequer-berry, Partridge-berry,..*Winter Clover. |
| 1877 E. Peacock Gloss. Words Manley & Corringham, Lincs. 276/2 *Wintercrack, a small green plum, the fruit of which ripens very late. 1898 N. & Q. 13 Aug. 235/2 A fair-sized round, yellowish plum, only fully ripe in November, is known in Derbyshire as the ‘winter-crack’. They are called ‘cracks’ because with the first frosts the fruit cracks on one side, being then fully ripe. 1914 D. H. Lawrence Prussian Officer 282 There were some..winter-crack trees. |
| 1884 Miller Plant-n., Sternbergia lutea, *Winter Daffodil. |
| 1804 T. Bewick Brit. Birds II. 360 Pintail Duck. Sea Pheasant, Cracker, or *Winter Duck. 1885, 1917 Winter duck [see ladybird 3]. |
| 1785 Pennant Arctic Zool. II. 209 *Winter Falcon... With a black bill; yellow cere:..appears at approach of winter, and retires in the spring. |
| 1783 Latham Gen. Syn. Birds III. 274 *Winter Finch... Found at New York, in the winter. |
| 1809 A. Edmondston Zetland Isl. I. 240 Ling..are known by the name of *winter fish. |
| 1814 S. L. Mitchill Fishes N.Y. 387 New-York Flatfish..is called the *winter flounder. 1873 T. Gill Catal. Fishes E. Coast N. Amer. 16 Pseudopleuronectes americanus... Common flounder; winter-flounder; mud dab. |
| 1733 Pope Let. to Richardson 10 June, I hope to see you..before this *Winter-flower is faded. I will defer her Interment till Tomorrow Night. |
| 1597 Gerarde Herbal ii. cxiii. 371 The people in Cheshire do call them *Winter Gilloflowers. 1615 W. Lawson Orch. & Gard. vi. (1623) 12 Wall-flowers, commonly called Bee-flowers, or winter Gilly-flowers. |
| 1899 D. Sharp in Harmer & Shipley Cambr. Nat. Hist. VI. vii. 473 The *winter gnats of the genus Trichocera are a fair sample of this sub-family. 1926 A. H. Hamm in J. J. Walker Nat. Hist. Oxf. District 257 Four species of ‘Winter-gnats’ are always common from autumn to spring. 1968 Oxf. Bk. Insects 122/1 There are ten British Winter Gnats, which belong to the family Trichoceridae and look like small crane-flies. They get their English name from their way of ‘dancing’ in large swarms on winter afternoons. |
| 1771 G. Washington Diary 20 Nov. (1925) II. 43 Began to Plant Cuttings of the *Winter Grape. 1789 [see frost-grape s.v. frost n. 7 c]. 1814 F. Pursh Flora Amer. Septentr. I. 169 Vitis cordifolia..commonly called Winter-grape or Chicken-grape. 1949 Amer. Photogr. Apr. 244/2 Winter grape is one of our commonest species from northern New York to Michigan. |
| 1804 T. Bewick Brit. Birds II. 221 *Winter Gull. Winter Mew, or Coddy Moddy. |
| 1831 Audubon Ornithol. Biog. I. 364 The *Winter Hawk. Falco hyemalis, Gmel. |
| 1882 Garden 14 Jan. 17/1 The *Winter Heath (E[rica] carnea) as a low-growing..shrub is one of the best of all winter blooming plants. |
| 1678 Ray Willughby's Ornith. 350 The *Winter-Mew, called in Cambridge-shire the Coddy-Moddy. |
| 1854 J. Hogg Microsc. ii. ii. 288 The appearance of gnats. The first that appear are called *winter midges (Trichocera hyemalis). |
| 1819 G. Samouelle Entomol. Compend. 359 Smerinthus brumaria. The *Winter Moth. 1869 E. Newman Brit. Moths 106 The Winter Moth (Chimatobia brumata). |
| 1787 J. Woodforde Diary 31 Oct. (1926) II. 354 Mr. Custances Garden brought us this Morning a Basket of *Winter Peaches. 1960 I. Wallach Absence of Cello (1961) 199 Marian wanted a winter peach. |
| 1862 W. S. Coleman Woodlands 118 ‘*Winterpick-wine’ takes the place of port in the rustic ‘cellar’. |
| 1664 Evelyn Kal. Hort. Jan. (1669) 21 Apples..Holland-pepin, John-apple, *Winter-Queening. 1714 J. Lawson Carolina 108 Winter Queening is a durable Apple, and makes good Cider. |
| 1889 Science-Gossip XXV. 146/1 Our lively cardinal grosbeak..is known as the ‘*winter red bird’, because..more of a songster in December than in June. |
| 1742 Young Nt. Th. ii. 240 The *winter Rose must blow, the Sun put on A brighter Beam in Leo. 1891 Kipling Life's Handicap iv. 88 Clumps of winter-roses lay between the silver candlesticks. |
| 1888 Goode Amer. Fishes 409 In the Chesapeake region it is known as the ‘Mud-Shad’, ‘*Winter-Shad’, or ‘Stink Shad’. |
| 1709 T. Robinson Vind. Mosaick Syst. 89 Those [creatures] that are *Winter-Sleepers, when the Summer warmth abates,..draw to..Winter-Quarters. 1911 J. A. Thomson Biol. Seasons iv. 333 A survey of the Winter-sleepers seems to show that the life-saving reaction must have arisen by..natural selection. |
| 1775 Boston Transcript 26 Apr. iii. 12/7, I have a fine prospect of a Crop of..*winter Squashes this fall. 1809 Kendall Trav. III. lxx. 109 The vine of a species of pompion called by the colonists winter squash. 1969 Oxf. Bk. Food Plants 122/2 Winter squashes are cut in the autumn and can be kept for 3 or 4 months or longer. |
| a 1746 Holdsworth Remarks on Virgil (1768) 29 The Arbutus cannot here mean the *Winter-Strawberry. |
| 1840 Paxton Bot. Dict., *Winter sweet, Origanum heracleoticum. 1893 W. Robinson Eng. Flower Garden (ed. 3) 325/2 Winter Sweet is a lovely shrub which in our country requires a wall. It flowers in December and January; beautiful, and of delicious fragrance. 1934 Ld. Berners First Childhood ii. 20 Just outside the windows there grew a shrub of the early-blossoming chimonanthus. (Winter-sweet it was called in the days before gardeners grew so refined.) 1955 [see chimonanthus]. 1980 Gardener's Dozen 12 My winter-sweet..sometimes gets knocked about by the frost and snow. |
| 1766 Compl. Farmer s.v. Pear 5 Y 4/2 The *winter-thorn. |
▸
winter rules n. Golf (in non-professional golf) rules allowing a player to reposition the ball slightly for a better lie without penalty, usually invoked in adverse weather conditions;
cf. preferred lie n. at
preferred adj. and
n. Special uses.
| 1903 Washington Post 19 Apr. 11/1 Then the recent rains had left several of the greens in poor condition, and the *winter rules were adopted to obviate these imperfections. 1961 T. Armour How to play your Best Gold all the Time 45 Don't get into the habit of using ‘winter rules’. 2006 Irish Times (Nexis) 31 Jan. (Sport section) 25 Graham's back nine is the lowest recorded in competition on the course and his round would represent a course record but for winter rules being in place. |
▪ II. ˈwinter, n.2 [Origin uncertain. Perhaps originating as a jocular antithesis to the
summer or upper rail or cross-bar of the hand-printing press (
summer n.2 3 e). Connexion with
north. dial. winter = trivet is uncertain.]
In a hand-printing press, a block of wood about nine inches broad by nine deep, supporting the carriage and having a tenon at each end to fit into corresponding mortices in the cheeks.
| 1683 Moxon Mech. Exerc., Printing x. ¶4 The Length of the Winter besides the Tennants, is one Foot nine Inches. 1770 Luckombe Hist. Printing 298. 1888 Jacobi Printers' Voc. 156. |
▪ III. ˈwinter, v. [f. winter n.1 after L. hiemare (in senses 1, 2), hibernare (in sense 1); cf. MHG., MLG., Du. winteren (G. wintern), ON. vetra.] 1. intr. To pass or spend the winter; to stay or reside (at a specified place) during the winter; (of animals) to find, or be provided with, food and shelter in the winter. Also (
Canad.) with
out.
| 1382 Wyclif Acts xxvii. 12 If on ony maner thei myȝten come to Fenyce, for to wynterne in the hauene of Crete. 1526 Tindale Acts xxvii. 12 The haven was nott commodius to wynter in. 1535 Coverdale Isa. xviii. 6 The beastes of the earth wyntered there. 1668 Dryden Even. Love ii. i, Birds that breed in one Countrie, and goe to winter in another. 1726 Swift Gulliver ii. i, Discovering a Leak we unshipped our Goods and winter'd there. 1801 A. Mackenzie Voy. Montreal Fur Trade p. xxvii, About a third of these [middlemen] went to winter, and had more than double the above wages. 1826 Lamb Elia Ser. ii. Pop. Fallacies xv, What savage unsocial nights must our ancestors have spent, wintering in caves and unillumined fastnesses! 1828 Darvill Engl. Race Horse Introd. p. ix, Mr. Crooke had a farm at Redland, in Gloucestershire, at which place his horses usually wintered. 1867 Freeman Norm. Conq. I. ii. 46 The heathen men wintered for the first time in the Isle of Sheppey. 1870 in C. Wilson Campbell of Yukon (1970) 165, I..had long consultations with most of the Freemen, wintering out in this quarter. 1968 E. Russenholt Heart of Continent viii. 132 When November [comes]..the population of Assiniboia is ‘at home’—excepting only, those hundreds who elect to ‘winter out’ on the plains and along the waterways. 1970 R. Symons Broken Snare xvi. 112 He [sc. a steer] had found a bunch of wild horses... So he had wintered out quite happily with his kind hosts. |
| fig. 1835 Dickens Sk. Boz, Parish iii, The Miss Willises..seemed to have no separate existence, but to have made up their minds just to winter through life together. |
2. a. trans. To keep or maintain during winter;
esp. to provide (animals) with food and shelter in winter. (Also said of the food, or of the land.)
| c 1440 Promp. Parv. 530/1 Wyntryn', or kepe a thynge al the wyntyr, yemo. 1550–1 Test. Ebor. (Surtees) VI. 306 To wynter theme [sc. two ox twinters] unto such tyme as thei be able to drawe. 1570–1 in Willis & Clark Cambridge (1886) III. 594 For vppyng y⊇ Swannes and wynteryng them..xxiijs. 1580 Knaresb. Wills (Surtees) I. 139 To..my wief a cowe and asmoche haie as will wynter hir. 1607 Topsell Four-f. Beasts 605 They summered them [sc. sheep] in Apulia, they wintered them in Samnius. 1710 D. Hilman Tusser Rediv. Oct. (1744) 135 If I keep more Sheep than I can Winter. 1824 Loudon Green-house Comp. i. 15 The sickly condition of plants wintered in such of these houses as still exist. 1882 Garden 18 Mar. 187/3, I have given up wintering Cauliflower plants. 1883 Standard 3 Apr. 3/5 It should be the aim of the grass-land farmer to summer as many and winter as few animals as possible. |
† b. fig. To maintain (an opinion) through a period of trial. (
Cf. to summer and winter s.v. summer v.
1 3 b.)
Obs. rare.
| 1608 Bp. Hall Charac. ii. 108 The Vnconstant..what he will be next, as yet he knoweth not; but ere hee haue Wintred his opinion, it will be manifest. 1618 T. Adams Serm. Heb. xiii. 8 Wks. (1629) 853 To winter an opinion is too tedious: hee hath beene many things; what hee will bee, you shall scarce know, till hee is nothing. |
c. With
over.
= over-winter v. 4. Also
intr.| 1979 C. Kilian Icequake iv. 42 How are we supposed to winter over on a goddam iceberg? 1982 ‘E. Lathen’ Green grow Dollars i. 12 A tomato that could be planted, wintered over, then harvested. |
† 3. intr. To be or become wintry.
Obs. rare.
| 1483 Cath. Angl. 420/1 To Wyntyr, brumare, brumescere. |
† 4. pa. pple. Detained by winter weather, winter-bound.
Obs. rare.
| 1555 Eden Decades (Arb.) 251 They sayled to the .49. degree and a halfe vnder the pole Antartyke; where beinge wyntered, they were inforced to remayne. |
5. trans. To affect like winter, subject to wintry conditions; to make wintry; to chill, freeze. Chiefly
fig. (
cf. winter n.1 1 c).
| 1622 J. Taylor (Water P.) Sir G. Nonsence Wks. (1630) ii. 3/2 Time that now summers him, wil one day winter him. 1628 Ford Lover's Mel. iv. iii, I am so..wintred with the tempests of affliction. 1797 A. Seward Lett. (1811) IV. 355 Experience has wintered the aspect of the future. 1857 Meredith Farina (1894) 304 They uttered noises that wintered the blood. |