Merriam-Webster Logo
SINCE 1828
dictionary thesaurus view recents

almanac

noun
Save Word
al·​ma·​nac | \ ˈȯl-mə-ˌnak How to pronounce almanac (audio) , ˈal- How to pronounce almanac (audio) \

Definition of almanac

1 : a publication containing astronomical and meteorological data for a given year and often including a miscellany of other information
2 : a usually annual publication containing statistical, tabular, and general information

Examples of almanac in a Sentence

an almanac of town news
Recent Examples on the Web Unfamiliar readers, fear not; Haratischvili writes deceptively easy prose and inserts historical and cultural references, as clear as an almanac, along the way. — Wendell Steavenson, New York Times, "Who Needs a Sweeping Epic About the Red Century? You Do," 14 Apr. 2020 Other names for April’s full moon are the Sprouting Grass Moon, the Egg Moon and the Fish Moon, according to the almanac. — Jesus Jimenez, Dallas News, "Here’s when you can see 2020’s biggest, brightest pink supermoon over Dallas-Fort Worth," 7 Apr. 2020 The April full moon is also sometimes called the Egg Moon, Fish Moon and Sprouting Grass Moon, according to the almanac. — oregonlive, "April’s ‘pink’ supermoon will be the biggest and brightest of 2020," 2 Apr. 2020 Stones, moss, currency, newspapers, catalogs, almanacs, literature, and government proclamations served until, by most accounts, a New York City inventor named Joseph C. Gayetty came up with the first commercial toilet paper around 1857. — Michael E. Ruane, BostonGlobe.com, "Toilet paper takes center stage amid coronavirus outbreak. Be thankful we no longer use corncobs and rope ends.," 21 Mar. 2020 The almanac serves as a cultural touchstone for a community that not a lot of people outside of that community can find a window into. — Anchorage Daily News, "Small cod fishery will occur after all in Gulf of Alaska’s state waters," 24 Dec. 2019 According to Air Force Magazine’s annual almanac, that’s the entire F-15 fighter force tasked with the air combat mission. — Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, "The Air Force Could Cut Loose Tons of Older Planes," 8 Feb. 2020 Within a decade, an entire almanac of these domains—.in (India), .br (Brazil), .au (Australia)—had formed. — Michael Waters, Wired, "The Digital Colonialism Behind .tv and .ly," 7 Feb. 2020 Carlston had been fascinated by the almanac as a kid and wanted some way of incorporating it into the game. — Matt Jancer, Smithsonian, "How a Generation Became Obsessed With Tracking Down Carmen Sandiego," 15 Oct. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'almanac.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

See More

First Known Use of almanac

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

History and Etymology for almanac

Middle English almenak, from Medieval Latin almanach, probably from Arabic al-manākh the almanac

Keep scrolling for more

Learn More about almanac

Time Traveler for almanac

Time Traveler

The first known use of almanac was in the 14th century

See more words from the same century

Statistics for almanac

Last Updated

29 Apr 2020

Cite this Entry

“Almanac.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/almanac. Accessed 27 May. 2020.

Keep scrolling for more

More Definitions for almanac

almanac

noun
How to pronounce almanac (audio) How to pronounce almanac (audio)

English Language Learners Definition of almanac

: a book published every year that contains facts about the movements of the sun and moon, changes in the tides, and information of general interest
: a book published every year that contains detailed information on a special subject

See the full definition for almanac in the English Language Learners Dictionary

almanac

noun
al·​ma·​nac | \ ˈȯl-mə-ˌnak How to pronounce almanac (audio) , ˈal- \

Kids Definition of almanac

: a book published yearly that contains facts about weather and astronomy and other general information

Keep scrolling for more

More from Merriam-Webster on almanac

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for almanac

Rhyming Dictionary: Words that rhyme with almanac

Spanish Central: Translation of almanac

Nglish: Translation of almanac for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about almanac

Comments on almanac

What made you want to look up almanac? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

Show Comments  Hide Comments 

WORD OF THE DAY

longueur

Listen to the pronunciation of longueur

See Definitions and Examples »

Get Word of the Day daily email!

Test Your Vocabulary

Obscure Shapes

  • a pile of three dimensional shapes in green
  • Something that is ooid is shaped like:
Spell It

Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?

TAKE THE QUIZ
Add Diction

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Words at Play
Ask the Editors
Word Games