From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishwinterwin‧ter1 /ˈwɪntə $ -ər/ ●●● S2 W2 noun [countable, uncountable] TMCthe season after autumn and before spring, when the weather is coldest → summer Soon it will be winter.in (the) winter It usually snows here in the winter.this/last/next winter Fuel supplies could be seriously disrupted this winter.GRAMMAR: Patterns with winterin winter/in the winter• You use in winter or in the winter when saying that something happens at that time: It often snows here in winter. We’re going skiing in the winter.last winter/this winter etcDon’t use in with these words:• You say last winter: Last winter the temperature fell to minus 20 degrees. ✗Don’t say: In last winter the temperature fell to minus 20 degrees.• You say this winter: We’ve had a lot of snow this winter. ✗Don’t say: We’ve had a lot of snow in this winter.• You say next winter: Next winter she will turn 18. ✗Don’t say: In next winter she will turn 18.• You say that winter: The lake froze over that winter. ✗Don’t say: The lake froze over in that winter.COLLOCATIONSadjectivescoldThat winter was particularly cold.severe/hard/harsh (=very cold)In a hard winter, many birds starve.mild (=not very cold)Winters here are generally mild.long (=lasting a long time)The long winter finally came to an end.winter + NOUNthe winter monthsDuring the winter months the town is often cut off.winter coat/shoes (=designed for winter)I need a new winter coat.phrasesin the depths of winter (=in the middle of the winter)Even in the depths of winter, the harbour is never completely frozen.the onset of winterShe dreaded the onset of winter.
Examples from the Corpus
winter• Both in summer and winter thousands came to the mountains, returning home with yoghurt, cheese and other products.• After the hard winter of 1848, the family immigrated to Pittsburgh, where her sisters lived.• In winter the frozen river is the only route into Zanskar.• In winter, rice fields were bare and brown, but there was the anticipation of spring planting just around the corner.• The compartments have little curtains in the windows; the lamps are lit; it's eleven a.m. but still winter.• In the summer, open windows and in the winter, turn on the heating so it is warm and welcoming.• In the winter, it had taken several days at room temperature before they showed any signs of life.• It was winter at last and a cool breeze blew at night.in (the) winter• She was used to draughty spaces, soaring walls, a nightly ritual of wraps and hot bricks in winter.• And the island offers value for the travel dollar, especially in winter.• Biaggi visited Pech-Merle in winter after the tourist season, so that she received a private tour.• Requires a resting period in Winter.• But the theaters hit a problem in the winter, when hens lay fewer eggs and audiences began to dwindle.• Hen harriers, merlins and short-eared owls may be seen in winter.• During a 45-day storm in the winter of 1968-69, the Mount Disney and Mount Lincoln chair lifts virtually disappeared.• You can take a few simple steps to help keep your home warmer in winter time.winterwinter2 verb [intransitive always + adverb/preposition] formal STAY WITH SB, IN A HOTEL ETCto spend the winter somewhere → summer Last year, over 11,000 Canadians wintered in Arizona.→ See Verb tableExamples from the Corpus
winter• About 100 are now found wintering fairly regularly in Bosham Creek.• Maynard Bolster, wintering from Kalispell, Mont., is in his customary seat, dutifully keeping score.• As many as 80,000 knot spend their winters here - that's around a quarter of the total population wintering in Britain.• Except in very cold weather, however, the numbers wintering in Sussex are never very large.Origin winter1 Old English 