Definition of "overwinter" []

• To remain alive through the winter: sheep that overwintered on the steppe. (verb-intransitive)
• To pass or spend the winter: We usually overwinter in the Bahamas. (verb-intransitive)
• Occurring during the period of winter. (adjective)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "So the problem is, do I dig it up and "overwinter" it inside or do I turn her lose on the world and see if she's hardy enough to make it on her own?"
• "Frost used to kill them off, but now they "overwinter" and produce more generations each year as they go."
• "Millions of the orange and black-winged insects migrate to the Oyamel fir forest in Mexico to overwinter, he said, noting that 'overwinter' is a term that refers to the winter migration of butterflies and other critters."