sundown

American  

[suhn-doun] / ˈsʌnˌdaʊn /

noun

1. sunset, especially the time of sunset.

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verb (used without object)

1. Psychiatry. (especially of dementia patients) to experience confusion or hallucinations late in the day or at night, likely as a result of strange surroundings, drug effects, decreased sensory input, or reduction of oxygen supply to the brain.

sundown British  

/ ˈsʌnˌdaʊn /

noun

1. another name for sunset

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Etymology

Origin of sundown

First recorded in 1610–20; sun + down ¹

Example Sentences

Long Beach’s R&B savant Giveon kept his Coachella stage to a monochrome motif during his sundown set.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 13, 2026

Eid al-Fitr is held on the first day of the 10th month of the calendar marking the end of Ramadan, when Muslims fast from dawn to sundown.

From BBC • Mar. 20, 2026

When I explained this to a Muslim friend, he replied that it “kinda sounds like diet Ramadan”—which demands that Muslims go without food or drink from sunup to sundown.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 19, 2026

“If the conflict abates by Monday sundown, coinciding with the start of the Jewish holiday Purim, the oil price spike could prove short-lived,” Kaneva wrote.

From Barron's • Mar. 2, 2026

Lancelot and Guenever looked over the sundown of chivalry, from the tower window.

From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White

Related Words

• dusk