Santa Claus

noun

San·​ta Claus ˈsan-tə-ˌklȯz 

 also  ˈsan-tē-

variants or Santa

ˈsan-tə 

: a plump, white-bearded, red-suited, and jolly old man in modern folklore who delivers presents to children at Christmastime

There might be a few weeks left until Christmas, but Santa Claus and his merry elves landed early in Bakersfield because several boys and girls on the nice list caught their attention.

—Ema Sasic

… we had dashed downstairs to the living room to see what Santa had brought and piled up, in great mounds of splendidly wrapped packages, under the Christmas tree—whose angel's halo brushed the ceiling.

—Anthony Bailey

Examples of Santa Claus in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

And then there’s the character of the center of it all, Santa Claus himself (voiced by Brian Cox), who gets swept up in the town’s festive drama after a critical mistake threatens to derail the holiday. —Travis Bean, Forbes, 7 Dec. 2024

Watch Holiday Rush on Netflix The Claus Family After his grandfather, Santa Claus (Jan Decleir), falls ill, a young boy (Mo Bakker) who hates the holidays must take the reins as Father Christmas in this Dutch film. —Kelsie Gibson, People.com, 7 Dec. 2024

The main event, which includes the arrival of Santa Claus and the lighting of the city's Christmas tree, takes place outside of Metro Hall at Jefferson and Sixth streets in downtown Louisville. —Ana Rocío Álvarez Bríñez, The Courier-Journal, 7 Dec. 2024

In the Spotify Wrapped video message, Carey was seen wearing a red and white Santa Claus dress, with Christmas lights in the background. —Stephanie Giang-Paunon, Fox News, 7 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

modification of Dutch Sinterklaas, alteration of Sint Nikolaas Saint Nicholas

First Known Use

1773, in the meaning defined above