Winter Word Wall – Winter Words on Cards and Labels to Print

All 36 words

Winter weather and nature 12

blizzard A blizzard is a long snowstorm with strong wind and snow that is hard to see through.
evergreen An evergreen is a tree, such as a pine, that keeps its green leaves all winter.
freeze To freeze is to turn from a liquid to a solid. Water freezes into ice.
frost Frost is a thin white layer of ice crystals that forms on cold grass and windows.
hibernate To hibernate is to spend the winter in a deep rest, much like sleep, as a groundhog does.
ice Ice is frozen water. A pond turns to ice when it gets cold enough.
icicle An icicle is a spike of ice that hangs down where dripping water has frozen.
migrate To migrate is to travel to another place as the seasons change, as many birds do.
snow Snow is soft white flakes of ice that fall from clouds when the air is cold.
snowflake A snowflake is one flake of snow, an ice crystal or a clump of them.
thaw To thaw is to melt after being frozen. The pond will thaw when it warms up.
winter Winter is the coldest season of the year. It comes after fall and before spring.

Show all 36 words (24 more)

Winter clothes and things 12

blanket A blanket is a large, warm cover for a bed or a lap.
boots Boots are sturdy shoes that cover the foot and part of the leg and keep out snow.
coat A coat is a warm piece of clothing with sleeves, worn over your other clothes.
earmuffs Earmuffs are a pair of soft covers, joined by a band, that keep your ears warm.
gloves Gloves cover your hands, with a separate part for each finger.
hat A hat covers your head. A knit hat keeps your ears warm too.
mittens Mittens cover your hands, with one part for the thumb and one for the four fingers.
scarf A scarf is a long piece of cloth you wrap around your neck to keep warm.
shovel A shovel is a tool with a wide scoop and a handle, used to clear snow.
sled A sled is a seat on runners or a smooth bottom, for sliding over snow.
snowplow A snowplow is a truck with a wide blade on the front that pushes snow off the road.
snowsuit A snowsuit is a warm, padded suit that a child wears to play in the snow.

Things to do in winter 12

bundle up To bundle up is to dress in warm layers before going out in the cold.
cocoa Cocoa is a hot drink made with cocoa powder, milk or water, and sugar.
shiver To shiver is to shake a little because you are cold.
skate To skate is to glide over ice on boots with a blade under each one.
ski To ski is to glide over snow on two long, narrow runners called skis.
sledding Sledding is riding a sled down a snowy hill.
snow day A snow day is a day when school is closed because of heavy snow.
snow fort A snow fort is a wall or small shelter built of packed snow.
snowball A snowball is a ball of snow pressed together in your hands.
snowboard To snowboard is to ride down a snowy hill standing on one wide board.
snowman A snowman is a figure made of packed balls of snow.
snowshoe A snowshoe is a wide frame you strap to a boot so you can walk on top of deep snow.

How this list was compiled: Own work: our own choice of 36 winter words, sorted into three sets of twelve, with a meaning and a sentence written for each. No holiday is on the list. Each meaning was compared on 2026-09-30 with the entry in the American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (https://www.ahdictionary.com/word/search.html?q= plus the word) (for example mitten: the thumb apart and four fingers together; icicle: a spike of ice from dripping water; hibernate; evergreen; snowsuit; snowshoe). Blizzard and frost were also read in the glossary of the US National Weather Service, https://forecast.weather.gov/glossary.php?word=blizzard . Snow day and bundle up were read in the Cambridge Dictionary, https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/snow-day . Read the same day in Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Groundhog (it hibernates), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bird_migration , https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snowflake (one crystal or a cluster), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snow_fort and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hot_chocolate . Licence: own work

How it works

This winter word wall has 36 words in three sets: winter weather and nature, winter clothes and things, and things to do in winter. It is about the season itself, so it holds no holiday words.

Read the full guide

Three sets of winter words

Winter weather and nature opens first, with frost, icicle, blizzard, hibernate and migrate. Winter clothes and things runs from coat and mittens to sled and snowplow. Things to do in winter has ski, skate, snowman and snow day.

Cards for a pocket chart or a writing center

The print links sit under the card. Print 12 labels makes one sheet of twelve words, each a 60 mm square, to cut out and slip into a pocket chart or clip on a ring. For the meanings as well, press Print 12 cards and print the second sheet on the back of the first.

Mittens keep four fingers together; gloves give each finger its own part. Draw both beside the cards.
Freeze and thaw are opposites: water freezes into ice, and ice thaws into water.
Use a set as a word bank for winter writing: pick three words and write one sentence for each.

Questions and answers

What words go on a winter word wall?

Words for the season: snow, ice, frost, icicle, blizzard, mittens, scarf, sled, ski, skate, snowman. This list has 36 and leaves out the holidays, so the cards can stay up all winter.

Why are there no holiday words?

Families keep different holidays, and some keep none. Words such as frost, sled and snowman belong to every pupil in the room, whatever the month.

What does hibernate mean?

To hibernate is to spend the winter in a deep rest, much like sleep, as a groundhog does. To migrate is different: the animal travels to another place for the season.

Winter Word Wall: Winter Words on Cards and Labels