fair-weather

adjective

fair-weath·​er ˈfer-ˌwe-t͟hər How to pronounce fair-weather (audio)
1
: loyal only during a time of success
a fair-weather friend
2
: suitable for or done during fair weather
a fair-weather sail

Examples of fair-weather in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The fair-weather waterspout forms over water. Paula Wethington, CBS News, 19 June 2026 There were the longtime Democratic allies who became fair-weather friends. Susan Page, USA Today, 29 May 2026 Please come back my fair-weather friends. Clarence Schmidt, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 May 2026 Today, 14 years after that promise (and many subsequent ones by Elon Musk), fully autonomous vehicles remain a limited experiment, available in only a small number of fair-weather cities. Gary Marcus, Fortune, 1 Apr. 2026 Ladies’ first big blowup concerns a rumor that an old fair-weather friend of Myka’s is a madam. Judy Berman, Time, 27 Mar. 2026 Currently, the drone’s fuel cell is a fair-weather flier. Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 19 Mar. 2026 Forget fair-weather friends; consider this your best cold-weather friend, all winter long. Gretta Monahan, Boston Herald, 29 Jan. 2026 But although the president may be losing these fair-weather friends, the much-larger MAGA movement remains firmly in his corner. Yair Rosenberg, The Atlantic, 13 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1653, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Time Traveler
The first known use of fair-weather was in 1653

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Cite this Entry

“Fair-weather.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fair-weather. Accessed 27 Jun. 2026.

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