december

IPA/dɪˈsembə(r)/
KK[dɪsˈɛmbɚ]IPA/dɪˈsembər/

december — noun

  • decembersingular
  • decembersplural

1. In the yearly calendar, December comes after November and is the last month befo

1.nounA1
Definition

In the yearly calendar, December comes after November and is the last month before a new year begins.

Example

Theo plans to visit his family in Japan in December.

preposition 'in' for months

In many countries, December is a cold month with short days.

general statement about December

Common collocations
  • in December
  • early December
  • late December
  • December morning
  • December weather
  • December holidays

Usage Note

Always capitalized in English. Use 'in' for general references (in December) and 'on' for specific dates with a day number (on December 25th).

Common Mistakes

I will visit you on December.
I will visit you in December.
Use 'in' for a whole month, not 'on'.
She was born at december.
She was born in December.
Capital letter needed for month names, and use 'in' not 'at'.

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • early December
  • late December
  • mid-December
  • the beginning of December
  • the end of December

Prepositions

Etymology

LatinEnglish

December comes from the Latin word 'decem', which means 'ten'. In the early Roman calendar, the year began in March, so December was the tenth month. When January and February were later added at the start of the year, December became the twelfth month, but its name still carries the meaning of 'ten'.