Saint Martin's summer
- noun
- UK
:
veranillo de San Martín
- We were surprised by a brief Saint Martin's summer before winter truly arrived.
Examples
-
In some parts of Europe, people look forward to Saint Martin's summer each November.
-
Many poets have written about the beauty of Saint Martin's summer in the countryside.
-
Is this Saint Martin's summer?
-
It's a lovely Saint Martin's summer!
-
In many regions, the sudden warmth of Saint Martin's summer captivates people in November.
-
Farmers rejoice when they experience a mild Saint Martin's summer that extends the growing season.
-
Children enjoy playing outside during the brief period known as Saint Martin's summer.
Synonyms
30
3.2
A period of very hot weather that lasts several days
1
4.7
A period of warm, dry weather that comes in autumn after a frost
1
3.5
A period of several days with much hotter weather than usual
How Warm
Surface Forms
Morphology
The compound clearly links a saint's name with 'summer', so a learner who knows the words can infer it denotes a warm period associated with Saint Martin, giving some transparent cues. However the specific cultural meaning — a late-autumn warm spell around the saint's feast (not the actual summer season) — is lexicalized and not fully predictable from the parts; similar terms exist in other languages (e.g. Spanish 'veranillo de San Martín'), indicating partial but not complete transparency.
Etymology
Saint Martin's summer comes from an old European saying that around the day of Saint Martin (November 11) people sometimes had a few warm, sunny days after the harvest. So Saint Martin's summer means 'a short warm period in autumn'.