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hibernate

[hahy-ber-neyt] / ˈhaɪ bərˌneɪt /
VERB
lie dormant; sleep through cold weather
Synonyms


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

It’s a time to hibernate, rest and nourish yourself in preparation for the year of parties ahead.

From The Wall Street Journal Jan. 15, 2026

"We know they come here to mate, to hibernate, but what we don't know is why they make this journey."

From BBC Sep. 15, 2025

Though fence lizards don’t hibernate, they become sluggish in winter, which is why these days, warmed by the sun and driven by the urge to mate, they’re once more appearing all over.

From Los Angeles Times Apr. 25, 2025

Tuberculosis is caused by bacteria that, after infecting a person, tend to hibernate in the body.

From Slate Mar. 28, 2025

I can lower the Hab temperature to 1°C, and they'll nearly hibernate.

From "The Martian" by Andy Weir

Its full life cycle remains a mystery, but it probably includes a cyst stage that hibernates on the lake bottom until it’s triggered to divide and release new cells.

From Seattle Times Jul. 21, 2023

Ms. Charles is “holding her breath” while Pearl hibernates.

From New York Times Jan. 29, 2021

As the temperature cools, the Harlequin hibernates for the winter in buildings - including homes.

From BBC Oct. 5, 2018

A white dwarf star gathers hydrogen from its neighbor for 100,000 years, erupts, hibernates, goes through a dwarf-nova stage — and does it all over again, possibly for a billion years.

From Washington Post Aug. 30, 2017

Come summer he gets dozy and hibernates through to autumn, and I can speak a bit better.

From "Black Swan Green" by David Mitchell

The glove maker’s plant utilization rates are above 96%, excluding hibernated plants, he notes.

From The Wall Street Journal May 6, 2026

"Blue-tongued skinks hibernated under the garage and at night blue-banded and teddy-bear bees slept in the hedges under the front window," Dr Holden said.

From Science Daily Dec. 8, 2023

Aristotle thought that some birds such as swallows hibernated in the colder months and that others transformed into different species—redstarts turned into robins for the winter, he proposed.

From Scientific American Mar. 15, 2022

Without Thompson — and largely without Curry, who broke his hand and missed all but five games — Golden State hibernated through the 2019-20 season, finishing with the worst record in the league.

From New York Times Oct. 19, 2021

“I haven’t hibernated in three years. I’m ragged from it. Him too.”

From Anya and the Nightingale by Sofiya Pasternack

As hibernating animals, marmots put on weight before winter.

From BBC Aug. 5, 2026

With such an abundant year-round supply of snacks there’s a risk that bears could skip hibernating altogether if they become reliant on human food sources, the department said.

From Los Angeles Times Nov. 7, 2025

These field exposure estimates informed subsequent studies on the impact of such exposure on hibernating bumble bee queens and the hoary squash bee, a solitary ground-nesting species.

From Science Daily Nov. 18, 2024

"Minimizing disturbance to bats when they are hibernating or raising young is critical," Loeb said.

From Salon Jul. 30, 2024

“Because acting superior to everybody and hibernating in my bedroom reading Twilight for the millionth time is only making your summer last an eternity.”

From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith




Vocabulary lists containing hibernate


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