sunset

[suhn-set]

noun

1. the setting or descent of the sun below the horizon in the evening.

2. the atmospheric and scenic phenomena accompanying this.

3. the time when the sun sets.

4. the close or final stage of any period.

adjective

1. (of an industry, technology, etc.) old; declining.

   sunset industries.

2. of, relating to, or characteristic of a sunset law.

   to add sunset restrictions to a bill.

sunset

/ ˈsʌnˌsɛt /

noun

1. the daily disappearance of the sun below the horizon

2. the atmospheric phenomena accompanying this disappearance

3. Also called: sundown. the time at which the sun sets at a particular locality

4. the final stage or closing period, as of a person's life

Word History and Origins

Origin of sunset¹

Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400; sun, set

Example Sentences

At sunset, Rambler came bouncing down the driveway with the Shareefs in the front and Oscar in the back.

Read more on Literature

The ship left the island around sunset but returned several hours later after the crew realised the woman was missing.

Read more on BBC

“There are people in the White House who believe Duffy has made unnecessary chaos rather than just accept that his time is in the sunset,” one anonymous official told the outlet.

Read more on Salon

“All summer, there had been fewer cars on the road in Southern California, and everyone remarked on how with no smog, the sunsets weren’t deep, heated crimson. Just quiet slipping into darkness.”

Read more on Los Angeles Times

The system sparks debate nationwide: Seattle tried to phase out its gifted program recently, but protests pushed the sunset date back several years.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• dusk 
• nightfall 
• sundown 
• twilight