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

Sagittarius November 22 – December 21 Sagittarius, your voice matters more than usual. —Tarot.com, Hartford Courant, 11 Mar. 2026

Mohammad Pakpour, the most recent IRGC chief, was among those killed during the opening salvo, and it’s believed that Ahmad Vahidi, who had been named deputy chief in December, has taken the reins. —Mike Brest, The Washington Examiner, 11 Mar. 2026

Last December, a large coterie of Silicon Valley billionaires descended upon Miami to attend Art Basel, the ritzy, contemporary art fair that marks the end of the moneyed set’s yearly social calendar. —Stacy Perman, Los Angeles Times, 11 Mar. 2026

Trustee Andrea McElroy supported the move while speaking about bike safety at a special Board of Education meeting last December. —Michele Gile, CBS News, 11 Mar. 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.