month

month

W1S1 [mʌnθ] n

[: Old English; Origin: monath]

1.) one of the 12 named periods of time that a year is divided into

this/last/next month

▪ Phil is coming home for a visit next month.

▪ She'll be thirteen this month.

▪ I hope I'll have finished the work by the end of the month .

▪ She earns about £350 a month (=each month) .

▪ We update the schedule at least once a month.

the month of May/June etc

▪ It snowed heavily during the month of January.

2.) a period of about four weeks

▪ She has an eight-month-old daughter.

▪ He'll be away for two months.

▪ The symptoms she suffered varied from month to month (=every few weeks she had different medical problems) .

▪ a month-long transport strike

3.) months

a long time, especially several months

▪ Redecorating the kitchen took months.

for/in months

▪ I haven't seen him for months.

4.) month after month

used to emphasize that something happens regularly or continuously for a period of time

▪ I felt I was doing the same old thing week after week, month after month.

5.) month by month

used when you are talking about a situation that develops slowly and steadily over a period of time

▪ Unemployment figures are rising month by month.

6.) never/not in a month of Sundays

especially BrE spoken used to emphasize that something will definitely never happen

▪ You won't find someone to do that job in a month of Sundays.