[f. WINTER v. or sb.1 + -ING1.]
I. The action of WINTER v. in various senses.
1. The keeping or tending of cattle, etc., during winter; provision of food and shelter for animals in winter.
1477. [see SUMMERING vbl. sb.1 1].
1504. Nottingham Rec., III. 320. For wynttering of the commond bull’ iij s. viij d.
1583. Shuttleworths’ Acc. (Chetham Soc.), 15. The wynterynge and sommerynge of a styrke. Ibid. (1617), 253. Winteringe of a mare at Copthurst, xs.
1707. Mortimer, Husb., 171. Young, lean Cattel … may by their growth pay for their Wintering.
1855. Poultry Chron., II. 415. The successful wintering of bees.
1886. C. Scott, Sheep-farming, 123. The wintering of hill sheep.
† b. transf. or gen. Provision of food, clothing or shelter for persons in winter. Obs.
1586. Ferne, Blaz. Gentrie, 158. If thou hast a shrewd wyfe, giue her as shrewde a wintring, and turne her off to hard meat.
c. 1590. Trag. Rich. II. (1870), 43. We haue all need of some kynd winteringe. We are besett … with many stormes.
† 2. Winter weather (of a certain kind). nonce-use.
1545. Raynalde, Byrth Mankynde, 89. When so euer the wynter is hote & moyst,… when that such wintering chaunseth, the hote & moyste whether heateth and moysteth the womans body.
3. The action of passing the winter in a particular place; a stay or residence during winter.
a. 1593. Marlowe, trans. Lucan, I. 303. Our wintering Vnder the Alpes.
1621. in Foster, Engl. Factories Ind. (1906), 240. The Red Sea intended for our shipps wintering.
a. 1674. Milton, Hist. Moscovia, v. Wks. 1851, VIII. 503. Thir two years wintring in Lapland.
1740. Richardson, Pamela (1824), I. xxiii. 276. Whose heart is set upon the hope of her wintering with us in town.
1861. J. H. Bennet, Shores Mediterr., I. vi. (1875), 155. I had not seen the good results from wintering abroad that I have since experienced.
1887. Spectator, 8 Oct., 1340/2. Even in the Arctic seas, the art of wintering on the ice is so well understood, that if reasonable precautions are taken, there is no danger of disaster.
II. Concrete senses.
4. = WINTERLING. (See WINTER sb.1 2, and cf. SUMMERING vbl. sb.1 3 c.) Sc.
Cf. ON. vetrungr.
1717. Forfeited Estates Papers (S. H. S., 1909), Introd. p. xxix. Winterings, 30 at 2s. 91/2d. per Wintering.
1825. Jamieson, Winterin, Winterling.
5. An animal that is wintered in a particular place.
1901. Scotsman, 1 April, 9/2. To add to the anxieties of sheep-owners, the winterings are on the way from the low countries.
III. 6. attrib., as (in sense 3) wintering-ground, † -harbo(u)r (HARBOUR sb.1 2), -house, -place, -region, -station; (in sense 1) † wintering-meat (MEAT sb. 1).
c. 1520. Barclay, Jugurth, xxxviii. 52 b. Worthy men of his army … to be called togyder … from their wyntring places.
1600. Holland, Livy, V. ii. 180. The Romane captaines … began to build wintring harbours.
1606–7. Act 4 Jas. I., c. 11 § 1. The Oxen and Kyne … must be sold awaye for wante of winteringe Meate.
1611. in Voy. L. Foxe & James (Hakl. Soc.), II. 630. The certaine tyme of the Ship’s comming owte of the wintring port, he remembreth not.
1629. Le Grys, trans. Barclay’s Argenis, 291. As in perpetuall wintering stations.
1780. Coxe, Russ. Discov., 254. This wintering place was observed to lie in 53° 29′ North latitude.
1817. J. Bradbury, Trav. Amer., 51. I set out … at sunrise, for the wintering house.
1841. Catlin, N. Amer. Ind., II. lii. 149. The wintering post of Colonel Kearney.
