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

In December 2024, Grindr announced a $300,000 family-building benefit spread over five years and available to each eligible employee. —Christine Michel Carter, Forbes.com, 16 Aug. 2025

And in December, Rodarte—which produced a few key costumes in the film, including Portman’s show-stopping stage looks for the finale—will launch a limited-edition Black Swan capsule collection. —Keaton Bell, Vogue, 15 Aug. 2025

Nuno has been at Forest since December 2023, replacing Steve Cooper as head coach. —Sam Joseph, New York Times, 15 Aug. 2025

Beyond the high-profile assassination of CEO Brian Thompson last December, the company has also been grappling with a succession of financial difficulties. —Hugh Cameron, MSNBC Newsweek, 15 Aug. 2025

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.