autumnn.
/ˈɔːtəm/, U.S. /ˈɔdəm/, /ˈɑdəm/ 1.
a. The season between summer and winter (traditionally regarded as beginning with the annual harvest, and now generally regarded as lasting from September to November in the northern hemisphere and from March to May in the southern hemisphere), during which the leaves of many deciduous trees change colour and are shed, the nights get longer, and the weather typically becomes cooler.Used without article or (since the 16th cent.) with the.Cf. harvest n. 1. In North American usage the usual term is now fall (see fall n.2 40a).There has been some variation in the months regarded as comprising this season (see e.g. quots. 1656, 1755). In astronomy, autumn is the period from the autumnal equinox to the winter solstice.
ΘΚΠ
the world > time > period > year > season > [noun] > autumn
harvest902
harvest-tidec1175
harvest time1362
autumn?c1400
falling of the leaf?1504
fall1550
leaf fall1616
go-harvest1735
back-end1820
fall time1833
?c1400 (c1380) G. Chaucer tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (BL Add. 10340) (1868) iv. met. vi. l. 4142 Autumpne [L. autumnus] comeþ aȝeyne heuy of apples.
1526 Bible (Tyndale) Jude 8 Trees rotten in authum.
1565 J. Shute tr. P. Viret 1st Pt. Christian Instr. 132 Their should be yearely in euery prouince two Councels of Bishops, the one a litle before Lent, the other about the Autumne.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Taming of Shrew (1623) i. ii. 95 Though she chide as loud As thunder, when the clouds in Autumne cracke. View more context for this quotation
1656 T. Blount Glossographia at Autumnal Autumn..is from the sixth of August to the sixth of November.
1755 S. Johnson Dict. Eng. Lang. (at cited word) Popularly, autumn comprises August, September, and October.
1796 R. Southey Joan of Arc i. 292 When the leaves Fell in the autumn.
1864 Ld. Tennyson Aylmer's Field in Enoch Arden, etc. 82 Autumn's mock sunshine of the faded woods.
1887 A. A. Anderson Twenty-five Years in Waggon II. 61 The bush veldt, where most of the farmers..trek at the close of the autumn.
1959 A. Nin Children of Albatross 114 The chill of autumn was tempered by little coal stoves.
1983 B. Arnold Running to Paradise i. 30 I so love the autumn, picking fruit, storing things, looking forward to winter.
2015 Observer (Nexis) 23 Nov. (Environment section) The colour of a British wood in autumn is predominantly yellow.
b. The season between summer and winter in a particular year; an instance of autumn. Also (with modifier, as wet, mild, busy, etc.): a particular autumn characterized by the weather, conditions, etc., prevailing or experienced during that time.
ΚΠ
?1519 tr. A. Velthoven Pronostication Maister Adrian Whiche eclyps shal worke his effecte about Autumne or haruest tyme of this present yere.
1597 G. Harvey Trimming T. Nashe sig. F3v You though you are mad all the yeere, yet haue shewed the signe of it especially this last Autumne.
1610 H. Wotton Let. 25 Apr. in L. P. Smith Life & Lett. Sir H. Wotton (1907) I. 489 Touching the rejournment of my return till next autumn.
1697 K. Chetwood Pref. to Pastorals in J. Dryden tr. Virgil Wks. sig. ***1 We..can scarcely pass an Autumn without some access of a Feaver.
1744 Philos. Trans. 1740–41 (Royal Soc.) 41 835 In the Autumn of 1739, Mr. Cox..was desirous to dig a Well for the Service of his House.
1781 E. Pendleton Let. 10 Sept. in Lett. & Papers (1967) I. 372 We expect here to have a busy Autumn.
1806 W. Smith Observ. Water Meadows 45 It would be necessary to re-plough it every autumn.
1885 J. K. Laughton in Dict. National Biogr. IV. 33/2 The squadron..which convoyed the homeward trade in the next autumn.
a1942 J. S. Neilson Autobiogr. (1978) 53 It was a wet autumn.
1974 Listener 7 Feb. 177/1 By the autumn of 1915, there had been 19 zeppelin raids.
2015 Time Out London 21 Apr. 83/1 Kenneth Branagh returns to the West End this autumn.
2. Chiefly literary and poetic. The season of autumn personified, esp. as a bringer of bountiful harvest.
ΚΠ
c1450 J. Lydgate Secrees (Sloane 2464) l. 1488 The foure sesouns..ffirst veer and Estas next Autumpne with his greyn, Constreynt of wyntir with frostys ovir leyn.
1557 Earl of Surrey et al. Songes & Sonettes (new ed.) f. 65v But Autumn cannot bide, For when he hath brought forth his fruits & stuft the barns wt corn Then winter eates and empties all.
1648 J. Beaumont Psyche iv. lv. 45/2 Then follow'd Autumn, with her Bosome full Of every Fruit.
1793 R. Burns Poems & Songs (1968) II. 704 How cheery, thro' her shortening day, Is Autumn in her weeds o' yellow.
1813 P. B. Shelley Queen Mab viii. 104 Autumn proudly bears her matron grace.
1859 R. Harris Siege Candia i. 30 Some take the fruitful meads or heavenly plain, Where bounteous Autumn holds his equal reign.
1881 ‘M. Field’ Bellerophôn 142 Autumn stays her hands in their woodland reaving.
1907 Westm. Gaz. 26 Dec. 2/3 When Autumn wears her crotal gown.
2000 L. Chester All in All (Electronic ed.) Autumn releasing her leaves as well.
3. figurative. A period of maturity (sometimes with implications of incipient decline); spec. the period of life when a person is no longer young, or is approaching old age; middle age. Usually with of. Cf. spring n.1 17d, summer n.1 5, winter n.1 1d.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > goodness and badness > badness or evil > worse > [noun] > state or condition
ebbc1400
decayc1460
witheredness1535
decadencec1550
autumn1590
fall1590
dotage1606
twilight1609
pejority1615
decadency1632
atrophy1653
effeteness1862
wallow1934
the world > time > period > year > season > [noun] > autumn > season of maturity
autumn1590
1590 R. Greene Mourning Garment 2 Sophonos in his tender yeares carryed graue thoughts, and in the spring of his youth such ripe fruites, as are found in the Autum of age.
1594 S. Daniel Cleopatra i. in Delia (new ed.) sig. I5v Thys Autumne [printed Antumne] of my beauty.
a1631 J. Donne Serm. (1953) VI. 172 In heaven it is alwaies Autumne, his mercies are ever in their maturity.
1647 (title) The Infamous History of Sir Simon Synod... Describing the Acts of the Youth, Autumne, and Old Age.
1705 M. Pix Conquest of Spain i. 10 Yet, like a Spring, it has reviv'd again This Autumn of my Years.
1770 J. Langhorne & W. Langhorne tr. Euripides in tr. Plutarch Lives II. 100 The very autumn of a form once fine Retains its beauties.
1824 J. M. Garnett 7 Lect. on Female Educ. i. 14 The gloomy autumn and winter of old age..must unavoidably be encountered.
1851 Monthly Relig. Mag. Aug. 370 We are young but once..; and, unless we enjoy the spring-time, the autumn will leave us quite devoid of excitement.
1915 Washington Post 30 Sept. 13/3 Although in the autumn of life, Mrs. Price stood with the grace and erectness of youth.
1975 E. S. Phelps Altruism, Morality, & Econ. Theory Introd. 1 The distinguished economic theorist in the autumn of his career.
2013 Daily Mail (Nexis) 23 May At 51, I suppose I am in the earlyish autumn of my years.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > farming > cultivation or tillage > cultivation of plants or crops > harvesting > [noun] > harvest
reapeOE
harvest1526
autumn1607
récolte1669
pick1875
1607 B. Jonson Volpone v. vi. sig. M3v You should ha' some would swell, now, like a wine-fat, With such an Autumne . View more context for this quotation
1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost v. 394 Rais'd of grassie terf Thir Table was..And on her ample Square from side to side All Autumn pil'd. View more context for this quotation
1708 J. Philips Cyder i. 24 The starv'ling Brood, Void of sufficient Sustenance, will yield A slender Autumn.
Compounds
C1.
a. General attributive.Some of the more established compounds of this type are treated separately at Compounds 1b. See also defined compounds at Compounds 5.
ΚΠ
1575 J. Banister Needefull Treat. Chyrurg. sig. Lviiiv We permitte him to eate Figges that be well ripened, as thinges lesse hurtfull, lesse engendring euill humors then the Autumne fruites.
1597 Bp. J. Hall Virgidemiarum: 1st 3 Bks. iii. i. 49 Time was, that whiles the Autumne fall did last, Our hungrie sires gap't for the falling mast of the Dodonian oakes.
1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Georgics iv, in tr. Virgil Wks. 128 For ev'ry Bloom his Trees in Spring afford, An Autumn Apple was by tale restor'd. View more context for this quotation
1709 A. Pope Autumn in Poet. Misc.: 6th Pt. vi. 740 Ye Trees that fade when Autumn-Heats remove.
1779 St. James's Chron. 12 Oct. It is thought the Dowagers here will have a run this Autumn Season... I assure you they are very numerous.
1818 Ld. Byron Beppo xxxiv. 20 I like on Autumn evenings to ride out.
1858 C. Kingsley Lett. (1878) I. 21 It was an afternoon of sullen Autumn rain.
1865 Atlantic Monthly Jan. 41/2 Their gorgeousness of autumn foliage.
1904 Collier's 7 May 14/1 He did not see the mountains or the river itself, or feel the chill of the autumn air.
1911 Clothier & Furnisher (N.Y.) Oct. 104 The well-cut autumn coat is very soft and supple.
1953 J. Collin-Smith Locusts & Wild Honey i. i. 10 It was a bright autumn morning.
1962 E. Snow Other Side of River (1963) xxiii. 174 Only phenomenally good weather during August could save the autumn harvest.
1983 C. Ozick Art & Ardor (1984) 304 Her paintings of autumn walks down to the sunny water.
2001 J. Hamilton-Paterson Loving Monsters (2002) xii. 228 It was the beginning of the autumn term and I was looking at the new timetables on the school notice board.
b.
autumn day n.
ΚΠ
1725 R. Bradley Chomel's Dictionaire Œconomique at Presage When the Summer or Autumn Days are hotter and more scorching than the Season will allow.
1863 N. Hawthorne Our Old Home II. 80 The chill..twilight of an autumn day darkening down.
2008 National Trust Mag. Autumn 11/3 Our thoughts are turning to a new season—crisp autumn days and our favourite walks, crunching through the leaves.
autumn fruit n.
ΚΠ
1575 J. Banister Needefull Treat. Chyrurg. sig. Lviiiv We permitte him to eate Figges that be well ripened, as thinges lesse hurtfull, lesse engendring euill humors then the Autumne fruites.
1814 J. Sinclair App. Gen Rep. Agric. Scotl. I. 441 A large autumn fruit of some flavour.
2005 Times 3 Sept. (Mag.) 52/1 I associate most of my mum's cooking with autumn fruit—damsons, elderberries, and blackberries.
autumn leaf n.
ΚΠ
1594 Warres Cyrus i. sig. A Like Autumne leaues before a Northren winde.
1877 M. Laffan Hon. Miss Ferrard I. vii. 191 The autumn leaves rustling under foot.
2016 Independent (Nexis) 6 Apr. (Features section) 41 The building [is] shaped and coloured like an autumn leaf which has just fluttered to the ground.
autumn wind n.
ΚΠ
1586 Praise of Musicke vii. 87 Autumn winds are not so common.
1846 A. Marsh Father Darcy II. x. 171 The autumn wind whispered low among the branches.
2014 C. Ford 100 Ideas for Early Years Practitioners x. 115 After the ease of playing outside in the summer,..it can be tempting to move indoors as the autumn winds blow.
C2. With the first element in the genitive (autumn's).
ΚΠ
1621 G. Sandys tr. Ovid First Five Bks. Metamorphosis iii. 86 Leaues, now wither'd, nipt by Autumn's frost.
1665 T. Manley tr. H. Grotius De Rebus Belgicis iii. 118 The Fields now growing wet with Autumn's Dews and Foggs.
1700 S. Wesley Epist. Poetry 21 Poets..Now fresh and green, now sear and wither'd grow; Or burnt by Autumn's Heat, and Winter's Cold.
1736 J. Mawer tr. Oppian Cynegeticks i. 7 In Leafy Spring, and Leaf-shed Autumn's Days.
1819 P. B. Shelley Lines Euganean Hills in Rosalind & Helen 84 Autumn's evening meets me soon, Leading the infantine moon.
1846 Southern & Western Lit. Messenger & Rev. Nov. 654/1 Upon my 'numbing sense like Autumn's dews Around a shrinking flower: I feel it sink With drowsy influence about my heart.
1920 S. Gordon Land Hills & Glens xxiv. 138 Often of a dark autumn's night..I have heard the plaintive cry of ‘the ptarmigan of the waves’ from out of the pitchy darkness.
1982 P. Weller Bitterest Pill (transcribed from song, perf. ‘The Jam’) Now autumn's breeze blows Summer's leaves through my life.
2012 C. Finch Death in Small Hours xx. 119 He had come out in a light sack coat, more suitable to an autumn's day than an autumn evening.
C3.
a. attributive, designating a colour or shade characteristic of the leaves of deciduous trees in the autumn (such as red, gold, or brown), as autumn colour, autumn hue, autumn tint.
ΚΠ
1790 W. Sotheby Poems 48 Woods in autumn tints that warmly glow.
1821 Morning Post 9 Nov. 1/2 The Nobility..has encouraged the Proprietors of this new invention [sc. a dress] to produce them in every brilliant and useful Autumn colour.
1883 Overland Monthly Aug. 205/1 The outblaze of autumn colors that signals the end of summer.
1948 Life 6 Sept. 70 (advt.) High-winged two-buckle walker..in rich Autumn shades.
1971 Vogue 15 Sept. 49 (advt.) Rich autumn colours like wine, mole and teak.
1988 P. Wayburn Adventuring in Alaska (rev. ed.) iv. 306 The broad-leafed trees..adding color to the autumn hues.
2003 M. J. Boyd Wrestling with Muse vi. 96 Contemporary leather furniture contrasts with the sedate, warm autumn tones in the oriental carpets.
b. Modifying colour words to form nouns and adjectives.
autumn brown n. and adj.
ΚΠ
1864 Boston Daily Advertiser 15 Nov. The colors of the leaves not yet subdued to autumn brown.
1866 J. G. Whittier Snow-bound 21 Hill-sides autumn-brown.
1937 Washington Post 12 Nov. 18 Miss Ellen Woodward,..in a costume of rich autumn brown, chatted with Miss Van Volkenburg.
2008 N. Place OK Team 2 iii. 19 She..strikes a sensible pose, her autumn-brown cape flapping behind her.
autumn gold n. and adj.
ΚΠ
1858 Blackwood's Mag. Aug. 182/1 The neutral grey of Mr. Cox is a marked contrast to the autumn gold of Mr. Branwhite.
1940 Seymour (Indiana) Daily Tribune 3 Apr. 6/4 She moved across the wide kitchen,..the autumn-gold dress flowing softly down the length of her slender body.
1985 Sunday Mail (Queensland) (Nexis) 24 Nov. Genuine slate comes in a range of colors, from silver blue to autumn golds.
2005 A. Bryant Promises, Promises (2008) 225 The color was perfect—burgundy, rust, and a sage green on a warm autumn gold background.
autumn red n. and adj.
ΚΠ
1854 New Hampsh. Statesman 9 Dec. The wintry whiteness of his hair is warmed by the autumn red that grows upon his cheek.
1898 Butte (Montana) Weekly Miner 15 Dec. 12/1 His broad cheeks were wet with spray, autumn red with health and exertion.
1969 Illustr. London News 1 Mar. 33/3 It [sc. a blouse] comes in beige, green, nutmeg, crystal blue, autumn red, and jade.
2015 Sun (Nexis) 16 Sept. 6 He pulled down his shorts to reveal a healthy sprout of autumn red hair.
c. Forming adjectives with the sense ‘having (any of) the colours or shades (such as red, gold, or brown) characteristic of the leaves of deciduous trees in the autumn’, as autumn-coloured, autumn-hued, autumn-tinted, etc.
ΚΠ
1825 T. L. Beddoes Let. Mar. in Poems (1851) I. p. xl I believe the valuable autumn-hued envelope is the most deserving of the collection.
1829 N.Y. Mirror 30 May 369/1 The crowded vehicles..rolled rapidly away from the village, and were lost behind the autumn-tinted copses.
1839 Morning Post 4 Oct. A dress of autumn-coloured silk.
1873 Lippincott's Monthly Mag. Dec. 670/2 The wooded slopes retained but shreds of their autumn-dyed raiment.
1929 Times 15 Nov. 17/4 A bouquet of autumn-shaded chrysanthemums and yellow roses.
1940 Oceania 11 137 The red autumn-tinted leaves..add a smart touch of colour.
1983 Washington Post 9 July c4/1 Five women..dressed in autumn-hued tops and pants.
2005 Trav. Afr. Autumn 48/2 The dry and autumn-coloured deciduous woodlands..run south for a thousand miles.
C4. With participles forming adjectives, with the sense ‘in the autumn, during the autumn’, as autumn-flowering, autumn-fruiting, autumn-ripening; autumn-born, autumn-planted, autumn-sown, etc.
ΚΠ
1765 Museum Rusticum 4 l. 227 The winter frosts will have broke down the clods on to the roots of the autumn-sown rye.
1767 J. Abercrombie Every Man his Own Gardener (ed. 2) 179 (heading) Autumn flowering bulbs.
1838 Cultivator Apr. 44/1 What would be beneficial for an autumn-ripening, or hoed crop, would be prejudicial to a..summer-ripening crop.
1850 Gardeners' Mag. Bot. 1 106 The superiority of autumn-planted trees over those planted at any other time.
1896 T. W. Sanders Encycl. Gardening 86 Crocus... Plant..autumn-flowering species in Aug. & Sept.
1946 Nature 10 Aug. 203/1 The autumn-born calves were out on grass.
a1979 B. D'J. Pancake Trilobites (1992) 82 An autumn-blooming flower hung limply on its stem.
1992 W. T. Parsons & E. G. Cuthbertson Noxious Weeds Austral. 374/2 The perennating rootstocks and autumn-germinated seed form small overwintering rosettes.
2005 Grow your Own Dec. 30/1 Autumn-fruiting raspberries will produce fruit on the current season's growth.
C5. † autumn-bells n. Obsolete rare marsh gentian, Gentiana pneumonanthe; cf. autumn bell flower n.
autumn bell flower n. now chiefly historical (originally) marsh gentian, Gentiana pneumonanthe; (in later use) any gentian that flowers in late summer and early autumn.In quot. 1672: probably the soapwort gentian, G. saponaria. In quot. 1978: the Japanese G. makinoi.
ΚΠ
1597 J. Gerard Herball ii. 355 Calathian Violet..is called..in English Autumne bell flowers.
1672 J. Josselyn New-Englands Rarities 43 Autumn Bell Flower.
1710 W. Salmon Eng. Herbal i. cccxii. 414/2 (heading) Small Autumn Gentian, Calathian Violet, or Autumn Bell Flower.
1862 Proc. Essex (Mass.) Inst. 1856–60 2 96 Autumn Bell Flower. Here we have our autumnal fringed gentians, Gentiana crinita.
1978 tr. in Monumenta Nipponica 33 268/2 (note) Gentian or autumn bell flower.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > plants and herbs > according to family > Gentianaceae (gentians) > [noun]
gentianOE
fieldwooda1393
baldmoney1393
caresweeta1400
felwort1526
calathian violet1578
crosswort gentian1578
harvest-bell1597
gentianella1633
blue violet1649
marsh gentian1690
vernal gentian1728
pennywort1817
meadow pink1827
soap-gentian1845
soapwort gentian1845
autumn-bells1863
windflower1866
willow gentian1883
1863 R. C. A. Prior On Pop. Names Brit. Plants 13 Autumn-bells, from its bell-shaped flowers and their season of opening, Gentiana pneumonanthe, L.
autumn crocus n. (a) any of several crocuses (genus Crocus, family Iridaceae) that flower in the autumn; esp. C. nudiflorus, native to south-west Europe; (b) any of several crocus-like plants of the genus Colchicum (family Colchicaceae) that flower in the autumn; esp. meadow saffron or naked ladies, C. autumnale.Cf. spring crocus n. at spring n.1 Compounds 3e(c)(i).
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular cultivated or ornamental plants > particular flower or plant esteemed for flower > [noun] > iris and related flowers > crocus
saffronc1425
autumn crocus1629
crocusa1639
Scotch crocus1731
vernal crocus1778
saffron crocus1857
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular cultivated or ornamental plants > particular flower or plant esteemed for flower > [noun] > lily and allied flowers > bluebell and allied flowers > autumn crocus
wood-lilya1400
saffron of the spring1548
meadow saffron1551
hermodactyl1578
Mercury's finger1589
colchicum1597
autumn crocus1629
naked ladies1668
naked boysa1697
upstart1852
1629 J. Parkinson Paradisi in Sole 168 Crocus Byzantinus argenteus. The siluer coloured Autumne Crocus. This Saffron flower springeth vp in October, and seldome before.
1726 B. Townsend Compl. Seedsman 46 There is one Sort with a Yellow Flower, that blows in the Autumn, which is called the Autumn Crocus, but the green Leaf is a Colchicum Leaf.
1822 J. C. Loudon Encycl. Gardening iii. ii. 954 Many botanists..consider that there is only two species [1824 reckon only two species], the C[rocus] vernus, or spring-blowing crocus; and the C[rocus] sativus, the saffron, or autumn crocus.
1854 S. Thomson Wanderings among Wild Flowers iii. 261 We..turn to..the pretty autumn crocus, or meadow saffron (Colchicum autumnale).
1960 S. Ary & M. Gregory Oxf. Bk. Wild Flowers 162/1 Autumn Crocus (Crocus nudiflorus, family Iridaceae). Like Meadow Saffron, this species also flowers in the autumn after the leaves have died down.
2015 J. Warren Nature of Crops v. 91 Even more poisonous is the autumn crocus or meadow saffron, which has sometimes been confused with true saffron.
autumn equinox n. the equinox in autumn; = autumnal equinox n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > time > period > cycle of time > cycle of the year > [noun] > equinox
evenlengtha1325
equinoctiumc1400
equinoctial?a1475
equinoction1483
vernal equinox (or equinoctial)1534
level1548
equinox1588
autumnal equinox1594
autumn equinox1594
equinoctian1627
fall equinox1844
1594 T. Blundeville Exercises iii. i. xliv. f. 343v For if in this present yeare 1592, which is leape yeare, you count the dayes from the Vernall Equinoxe, which is the eleuenth of March, vnto the Autumne Equinoxe, which is the 13. of September, you shall find the number of the dayes to be 186.
1710 Mem. Rome 105 These Ceremonies are performed twice a Year throughout the Empire, at the Spring, at the Autumn Equinox.
1858 Med. & Surg. Hist. Brit. Army During War against Russia II. 32. The autumn equinox this year was marked by wet and chilly weather.
1939 Auckland Star 20 Mar. 1/8 Autumn equinox in New Zealand to day.
1991 C. Mansall Discover Astrol. iii. 29/1 The starting point of the zodiac, the vernal equinox (0° Aries) and its opposite, the autumn equinox (0° Libra) are those points in the Earth's orbit where the plane of the Earth's equator intersects with the plane of the ecliptic.
2009 J. Struthers Red Sky at Night 148 The harvest moon is the full moon that appears closest to the autumn equinox.
autumn fly n. any of various dipteran flies that are pests of livestock in the autumn; esp. (formerly) the stable fly, Stomoxys calcitrans, and (in recent use) the face fly, Musca autumnalis.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Insecta > order Diptera or flies > [noun] > suborder Cyclorrhapha > family Conopidae > conops calcitrans
autumn fly1798
1798 J. Ebers New & Compl. Dict. German & Eng. Lang. II. 903/2 Pferdestecher, a Dunfly, a Brittle or Gad-Bee, an Ox-Fly, the Autumn-Fly.
1861 R. T. Hulme tr. C. H. Moquin-Tandon Elements Med. Zool. ii. iv. i. 234 The Autumn Fly (Conops Calcitrans, Linn.)..bites the legs, especially on the approach of rain.
1943 Army Med. Bull. (U.S. Army Med. Field Services School) No. 65. 23 The common housefly (Musca domestica) and the autumn fly (Musca autumnalis) are prevalent.
1976 ADAS Q. Rev. No. 23. 289 From mid- to late-summer, the autumn fly, Musca autumnalis can surround cattle in enormous numbers.
2007 C. Barslund tr. P. Adolphsen Machine 78 An autumn fly, Musca autumnalis, got smeared against the windscreen of the car.
autumn-spring n. now rare a period of warm, springlike weather occurring in the autumn; (figurative) a late period of growth, youthfulness, etc.; cf. Indian summer n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > time > period > year > season > [noun] > periods of unseasonal weather
Michaelmas spring1557
All-Hallown Summer1598
St Martin's Summera1616
autumn-spring1639
go-summer1649
Indian summer1790
squaw winter1847
All Saints' Summer1861
Martin's summer1864
Martinmas summer1881
1639 T. Fuller Hist. Holy Warre iii. xi. 126 This short prosperity, like an Autumne-spring, came too late..to bring any fruit to maturitie.
1660 T. Forde Loves Labyrinth iv. viii, in Virtus Rediviva 57 Love can create an Autumn Spring, infuse New spirits in the old.
1854 Daily News 12 Dec. 5/2 We enjoy a third return of the autumn spring of the Crimea, and we had better enjoy and make the most of it while it lasts.
1957 S. Selden Man in Theatre v. 82 It is a time of false surge, sometimes called an ‘autumn-spring’.
autumn statement n. (also with capital initials) British Politics and Economics a financial statement made by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, usually in November or early December, including an economic forecast and an outline of forthcoming public expenditure limits, and serving as a precursor to the annual budget (see budget n. 4a).Introduced in 1976, the companion statement to the main annual budget has varied in content, timing, and name. From 1993 to 1996 the autumn statement was replaced by a summer statement, and from 1997 to 2009 by a pre-budget report; from 2018 there is to be a spring statement.
ΚΠ
1982 Times 9 Nov. 5 (heading) The Chancellor's Autumn Statement.
1992 Times 2 Mar. 23/6 The public spending increases announced by Norman Lamont..in the autumn statement.
2012 Daily Tel. 17 Nov. y9 (headline) Autumn statement: are taxes about to fall?
autumn tide n. now poetic and rare the season of autumn; autumn time.
ΚΠ
1597 H. Clapham Bibliotheca Theologica (Gen. vii. 11) f. 16/1 That season is Autumne tide.
1799 L. Booker Hop-garden ii. 39 This done, no care Till autumn-tide is thine.
1870 W. Morris Earthly Paradise I. ii. 485 The changing year came round to autumn-tide.
2011 J. S. Taylor Finding Brighter Days 89 Colors of the autumn tide Fade, leaf-by-leaf, most overnight.
autumn time n. the season of autumn; cf. fall time n. at fall n.2 Compounds 4.
ΚΠ
1581 A. Hall tr. Homer 10 Bks. Iliades v. 75 His harnesse shone as doth the starre within the heauen large, The whiche in Autumne time is raisd amid the mightie skie.
1691 A. Wood Athenæ Oxonienses I. 394 Robert..died in Autumn time or after.
1741 tr. J. A. Cramer Elements Art of assaying Metals i. iv. 179 It has been observed, that, in the Spring and Autumn-time, the East and North-Winds are neither too moist nor too dry.
1846 Times 14 Feb. (Suppl.) 9/3 The prices [of wheat] are fully 100 per cent. higher than they were at autumn time.
1945 Life 10 Sept. 22/3 (advt.) Old Virginia is splashed at autumn time with nature's bright garment of wild flowers.
2001 Water Gardening Oct. 64/1 Dawyck is particularly enticing during the autumn time, when blazen with colour, brilliant reds fight with mellow golds for attention.
autumn wood n. the portion of the annual growth of a tree which is formed later in the growing season and is typically denser and harder than the rest of the wood; = latewood n. at late adj.1 Compounds 4.Cf. spring wood n. 2.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > part of plant > part of tree or woody plant > wood > [noun] > ring or layer > formed earlier or later
summer wood1783
spring wood1840
autumn wood1863
latewood1872
early wood1893
1863 J. Justen in Builder 21 Feb. 131/3 A pine with small yearly rings is of good quality, for we find each spring or summer ring surrounded with riper autumn wood, richly saturated with resin.
1885 G. L. Goodale Physiol. Bot. (1892) 139 That [wood] which is produced earliest (spring wood) has somewhat larger ducts and wood-cells than that which is formed later (autumn wood).
1964 Forestry Terminol. (Soc. Amer. Foresters) (ed. 3) 95/2 Wood, late, the denser, smaller-celled, later-formed part of a growth layer. Syn. Autumn wood; Summer-wood.
2012 Current Microsc. Contributions Adv. Sci. & Technol. 1078 Cells in spring wood have thinner and weaker walls than those in autumn wood.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2017; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
autumnv.
/ˈɔːtəm/, U.S. /ˈɔdəm/, /ˈɑdəm/ rare (chiefly poetic).
1. transitive. To cause to mature or deteriorate with the passing of time; to cause to age.In quot. 1857 as part of an extended metaphor with reference to the changing seasons.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > source or principle of life > age > old age > make old [verb (transitive)]
eldc1400
age1530
enage1593
autumn1661
senilize1841
olden1850
1661 O. Felltham Resolves (rev. ed.) 206 Beauty it self once Autumn'd, does not tempt.
1857 G. Fletcher Provincialist 209 Thy green hopes died—By sorrow autumned, falsehood wintered them.
1978 Long Island Forum Jan. 5/3 Advancing age had autumned his face.
2. intransitive. To age, mature, or deteriorate into.In quots. in extended metaphors with reference to the changing seasons.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > source or principle of life > age > maturity > become mature [verb (intransitive)]
autumn1771
1771 ‘The Trifler’ Muse in Miniature 31 That life's fair spring may autumn into age.
1992 J. T. Burtchaell From Synagogue to Church ii. 98 The springtime of courtship and the summer honeymoon had autumned into bickering and bureaucracy.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2017; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
<
n.?c1400
v.1661