How to Use dormancy in a Sentence

dormancy

noun
  • The goal is to keep the grass alive, not wake it from dormancy or green it up.
    — Kim Toscano, Southern Living, 29 June 2026
  • Fall is the perfect time to ready these trees for dormancy.
    — Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 4 Nov. 2025
  • The space must be cool enough to keep the plants from breaking dormancy.
    — Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 12 Dec. 2025
  • Plants throughout the world use dormancy to get through bad times.
    — Beth Botts, chicagotribune.com, 4 Oct. 2020
  • There were at least signs the lineup’s days of dormancy might be in the past.
    — Nick Piecoro, azcentral, 30 May 2018
  • The longer the dormancy, the more get-up-and-go the gas pedal has.
    — Markis Hill, Kansas City Star, 25 Feb. 2026
  • Maple trees and their shallow roots break their dormancy, and the sap will be ready to rise up.
    — Susan Dietrich Hassler, Star Tribune, 3 Mar. 2021
  • These lawns will turn brown during dormancy and green up again when rains return.
    — Kim Toscano, Southern Living, 24 July 2025
  • These lawns will turn brown during dormancy and green up again when rains return.
    — Kim Toscano, Southern Living, 29 June 2026
  • Bulbs have short stems, and fleshy leaves and go through a period of dormancy.
    — Lauren David, Southern Living, 27 Feb. 2026
  • Bulbs have short stems, and fleshy leaves and go through a period of dormancy.
    — Lauren David, Southern Living, 18 July 2024
  • Early spring, before a tree or shrub breaks dormancy, is the best time to prune it.
    — Bonnie Blodgett, Twin Cities, 1 Apr. 2017
  • Late spring is prime time for fleas to wake up from their winter dormancy and start breeding.
    — Sophia Beams, Better Homes & Gardens, 30 Apr. 2026
  • Some seeds need a period of dormancy to sprout.
    — Barbara Gillette, The Spruce, 20 Apr. 2026
  • Predictably, plants are starting to come out of their dormancy.
    — Angela Fritz, Washington Post, 21 Feb. 2018
  • Without enough cold, these plants don’t get enough dormancy to flower and/or fruit.
    — Nan Sterman, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 Dec. 2025
  • That’s because the warmer your home is, the more quickly the tree will break dormancy (start to grow).
    — Tim Johnson, chicagotribune.com, 11 Dec. 2017
  • Note that when dormancy ends, grass leaves that have turned brown won’t revive, but new leaves will appear.
    — Lynn Coulter, Better Homes & Gardens, 14 Aug. 2024
  • Note that when dormancy ends, grass leaves that have turned brown won't revive, but new leaves will appear.
    — Lynn Coulter, Better Homes & Gardens, 12 July 2021
  • This will be your busiest time of year as your lawn heads out of dormancy into growing season.
    — Arricca Elin Sansone, House Beautiful, 15 Apr. 2021
  • At this stage in the game, wheat plants are out of dormancy and beginning to elongate.
    — Angela Fritz, Washington Post, 3 May 2017
  • Then cut the plants back in the springtime to bring them back after their winter dormancy.
    — Sheryl Geerts, Better Homes & Gardens, 17 July 2024
  • Plants shed their leaves and prepare for winter dormancy, giving way to new life.
    — Malaka Gharib, NPR, 4 Oct. 2025
  • Warm-season turf will look brown and dead during its dormancy in the cool months of fall and winter.
    — Markis Hill, Kansas City Star, 11 Apr. 2026
  • Any warm spell in spring seems to encourage bigleaf hydrangeas to break dormancy.
    — Miri Talabac, Baltimore Sun, 3 Aug. 2023
  • Plants heed these signals and move toward emerging from dormancy, each species on its own timetable.
    — Beth Botts, chicagotribune.com, 19 Dec. 2021
  • During dormancy, stop watering, and place the plant in a cool, dark place.
    — Arricca Elin Sansone, Country Living, 6 Feb. 2020
  • Scientists have long puzzled over what prompts the plants to switch from a state of dormancy and send up shoots.
    — Jackson Landers, Smithsonian, 19 Jan. 2017
  • For new wood bloomers, prune during dormancy before new growth begins.
    — Marie Iannotti, The Spruce, 29 May 2026
  • How causes a plant to exit dormancy?
    — Paul Cappiello, Louisville Courier Journal, 9 Jan. 2026

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'dormancy.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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