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Synonyms

sundial

American  
[suhn-dahy-uhl, -dahyl] / ˈsʌnˌdaɪ əl, -ˌdaɪl /

noun

sundials plural
  1. an instrument that indicates the time of day by means of the position, on a graduated plate or surface, of the shadow of the gnomon as it is cast by the sun.


sundial British  
/ ˈsʌnˌdaɪəl /

noun

  1. a device indicating the time during the hours of sunlight by means of a stationary arm (the gnomon ) that casts a shadow onto a plate or surface marked in hours

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

Etymology

Origin of sundial

First recorded in 1570–80; sun + dial

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

You’re watching a ticker that moves like a sundial.

From MarketWatch Dec. 12, 2025

The name gujeolpan refers to nine ingredients on a plate, with eight colorful vegetables or proteins sliced thinly and arrayed around the edge of plate, much like a mouth-watering sundial.

From Salon Oct. 26, 2025

As I squeezed the pedal harder, the animated speedometer—designed a bit like an Aztec sundial, with spiky points blooming around the center—grew in radiance.

From The Wall Street Journal Sep. 25, 2025

Only 28% said they preferred the sundial shuffle.

From Los Angeles Times Mar. 8, 2025

He was the first person in Greece to make a sundial, a map of the known world and a celestial globe that showed the patterns of the constellations.

From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan

Cross the orbit of 6446 Lomberg, the asteroid named in honor of his contributions to science, and sail by Mars, where the Spirit, Opportunity and Curiosity rovers bear sundials he helped design.

From Los Angeles Times Jul. 26, 2023

For instance, Grant County operated entirely by a system of sundials and groundhogs; in Pulaski County it was just 7:45 p.m. all the time.

From Golf Digest Nov. 2, 2017

This is the kind of time indicated by sundials, and it probably represents the earliest measure of time used by ancient civilizations.

From Textbooks Oct. 13, 2016

Ingenious inventors devised sundials, which indicate time by the length or direction of the sun’s shadow, to track temporal hours during the day.

From Scientific American Dec. 31, 2011

Werner’s favorite is one about light: eclipses and sundials, auroras and wavelengths.

From "All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr

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