sunlight
Americannoun
noun
-
the light emanating from the sun
-
an area or the time characterized by sunshine
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of sunlight
First recorded in 1175–1225, sunlight is from the Middle English word sonneliht. See sun, light 1
Vocabulary lists containing sunlight
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.
Without air molecules to slow them down, methane molecules move freely under the influence of gravity, bouncing across the surface as sunlight energizes them and colder temperatures reduce their speed.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 13, 2026
During her decade as a public defender in Arctic Alaska, Rebecca Wright Stevens found the summer’s constant sunlight more unsettling than the winter’s constant darkness.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026
During photosynthesis, plants use sunlight to convert CO2 and water into sugars while releasing oxygen back into the atmosphere.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 9, 2026
And US startup Reflect Orbital hopes to launch 50,000 huge satellites that use giant mirrors to point sunlight back down to Earth, with the aim of providing light during the night.
From Barron's ● Jul. 1, 2026
The bright sunlight of the Academy faded to black as we traveled back to the present one last time.
From "Glitch" by Laura Martin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
