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

Fort Collins Police Services told CBS Colorado the building was closed to access in mid-December after concerning levels of meth traces were detected in the building. —Dillon Thomas, CBS News, 21 Jan. 2026

Anger over that disparity boiled over in late December as the nation’s currency fell to an all-time low, setting off mass protests and a violent crackdown by Tehran. —Allison Morrow, CNN Money, 21 Jan. 2026

The couple, who tied the knot on her 25th birthday in December 2018, included a photo of Riley and Barry giving a warm welcome to their newest family member. —Angel Saunders, PEOPLE, 21 Jan. 2026

The company grabbed global attention after China, the world’s largest miner and processor of rare earths, tightened its supply of the critical metals needed to make everything from chips and cars to fighter jets starting last December. —Maggie McGrath, Forbes.com, 21 Jan. 2026

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

Rhymes for December

• dismember
• nonmember
• november
• remember
• september
• ember
• member

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.