summer
/ˈsʌmər/
noun
Origin
Proto-Germanic
*sumra- — summer
Overview
Meaning Now
- The warmest season of the year, in the northern hemisphere extending from the summer solstice to the autumnal equinox.
- A year of a person's life (often used in phrases like 'a child of ten summers').
Literal older meaning
season of the sun
Language path
Proto-Indo-European → Proto-Germanic → Old English → English
Earliest form
sumor
Earliest period
Old English
Journey
The word is of Germanic origin and is cognate with various Northern European terms for the season, reflecting the agricultural and climatic importance of the warmest period of the year in ancient Germanic cultures.
Evolution
- Proto-Germanic
*sumraz
“summer”
- Old English
sumor
“summer”
- Middle English
somer
“summer”
- Modern English
summer
“summer”
Connections
Word parts
summer
root
summer season
Related across languages
Old High German
sumar
summer
Old Norse
sumar
summer
Dutch
zomer
summer
Related words
Explore next
Related to summer
External references use DefinedTerm semantics.