diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 53cf4f47b..f815b6d46 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -47,6 +47,8 @@ The recommended way to use `winston` is to create your own logger. The
 simplest way to do this is using `winston.createLogger`:
 
 ``` js
+const winston = require('winston');
+
 const logger = winston.createLogger({
   level: 'info',
   format: winston.format.json(),