Word.ws English Dictionary

sun

/sʌn/

More pronunciations (1)Fewer pronunciations

Ireland/sʊn/

sun proper noun: the star that is closest to the Earth. Also the alternative form of sunn.

sun: the star that is closest to the Earth
Image: NASA, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Proper noun (1)

the sun

  1. The star that is closest to the Earth.
    • And the cite hath no nede of the ſunne nether of the mone to lyghten hit. For the bꝛynghtnes off God dyd light hitt: and the lambe was the light off hit.1526, [William Tyndale, transl.], The Newe Testamẽt […] (Tyndale Bible), [Worms, Germany: Peter Schöffer], →OCLC, The Revelacion off Sanct Jhon the Devine xxj:[23], folio cccxlij, recto
    • "I suppose I may have leave to do that!" Yes, she could do that, he said, but there was no road to that place; it lay east of the sun and west of the moon, and she could never find her way there.1886, Peter Christen Asbjø￵rnsen, translated by H.L. Brækstad, Folk and Fairy Tales, page 233

Noun (1)

sun (countable and uncountable, plural suns)

  1. A star, especially when seen as the centre of any single solar system.
    • Because Haestrom's sun has overwhelmed the planet's protective magnetosphere, humans foolhardy enough to venture into geth-controlled Haestrom must exercise extreme caution. Minutes of radiation exposure will overload shields and hours of exposure will kill.2010, BioWare, Mass Effect 2 (Science Fiction), Redwood City: Electronic Arts, →OCLC, PC, scene: Haestrom Codex entry
  2. The light and heat which are received from the Sun; sunshine or sunlight.
    • I have been broiling in the sun all morning.
    • Lambs that did frisk in the sun.c. 1610–1611 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Winters Tale”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount...
  3. (figuratively) Something like the sun in brightness or splendor.
    • For the Lord God is the ſunne & ſhield vnto vs: […]1560, [William Whittingham et al., transl.], The Bible and Holy Scriptures Conteyned in the Olde and Newe Testament. […] (the Geneva Bible), Geneva: […] Rouland Hall, →OCLC, Psalmes 84:11, folio 253...
    • […] I will never conſent to put out the Sun of Sovereigntie to all Poſterity, […]1649 February 19 (Gregorian calendar), attributed to Charles I of England, “Upon their seizing the Kings Magazines, Forts, Navy, and Militia”, in Έἰκὼν Βασιλική [Éikṑn Basilikḗ]. The Pourtraicture of...
  4. (literary, uncountable) Sunrise or sunset.
    • Imo[gen].[…]Prythee ſpeake, / How many ſtore of Miles may we well rid / Twixt houre, and houre? / Piſ[anio]. One ſcore 'twixt Sun, and Sun, / Madam's enough for you: and too much too. / Imo[gen]. Why, one that rode to's Excution Man, / Could neuer go ſo ſlow: […]1611 April (first recorded performance), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Cymbeline”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard...
    • [W]hileſt many an hunger-ſtarved poore creature pines in the ſtreet, wants clothes to cover him, labours hard all day long, runs, rides for a trifle, fights peradventure from Sun to Sun, ſick and ill, weary, full of paine and griefe, is in great diſtreſſe and ſorrow of heart.1638, Democritus Junior [pseudonym; Robert Burton], “Discontents, Cares, Miseries, &c. causes”, in The Anatomy of Melancholy. […], 5th edition, Oxford, Oxfordshire: […] [Robert Young, Miles Flesher...
  5. A revolution of the Earth around the Sun; a year.
  6. A transversing of the sky by the Sun; a day.
    • Four suns since was the word brought to me from ‘She-who-must-be-obeyed,’ ‘White men come; if white men come, slay them not.’ Let them be brought to the house of ‘She-who-must-be-obeyed.’1886 October – 1887 January, H[enry] Rider Haggard, She: A History of Adventure, London: Longmans, Green, and Co., published 1887, →OCLC
  7. The nineteenth trump/major arcana card of the tarot.
  8. The thirty-first Lenormand card.

Verb

sun (third-person singular simple present suns, present participle sunning, simple past and past participle sunned)

  1. (transitive) To expose to the heat and radiation of the sun.
    • Beautiful bodies lying on the beach, sunning their bronzed limbs.
    • There were lots of zany antics and we tried not to stare too obviously at the beautiful women toplessly sunning themselves...2000, William Laurance, Stinging Trees and Wait-a-Whiles: Confessions of a Rainforest Biologist
    Synonyms:
    apricate
  2. (transitive) To warm or dry in the sunshine.
  3. (intransitive) To be exposed to the sun.
  4. (intransitive) To expose the eyes to the sun as part of the Bates method.

Noun (2)

sun (plural suns or sun)

  1. A traditional Japanese unit of length, approximately 30.3 millimetres (1.193 inches).

Proper noun (2) capitalized: Sun

the Sun

  1. The star at the center of the Solar System (our solar system), which shines in our sky.
  2. The 91st sura (chapter) of the Qur'an.
  3. An English tabloid newspaper.
    Synonyms:
    Currant Bun

Noun (3) capitalized: Sun

Sun (plural Suns)

  1. (abbreviation) Abbreviation of Sunday.

Proper noun (3) capitalized: Sun

Sun (plural Suns)

  1. A surname.

Proper noun (4) capitalized: SUN

SUN

  1. The station code of Sunny Bay in Hong Kong.

Also used as

sun is also the alternative form of sunn.

sun meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Marathi and Urdu

sun in Hindi

the star around which the Earth revolves — see also Sun
सूर्य sūrya, सूरज sūraj, आदित्य āditya, दिनेश dineś, प्रभाकर prabhākar, दिवाकर divākar
a star, especially when seen as the centre of any single solar system
सूरज sūraj, ख़्वुरशेद xvurśed, रवि ravi, सूर्य sūrya, खुरशीद khurśīd, शम्स śams
light and warmth received from the sun
आफ़ताब āftāb
sunrise or sunset
सूर्योदय एवं सूर्यास्त sūryoday evã sūryāst

sun in Tamil

the star around which the Earth revolves — see also Sun
சூரியன் cūriyaṉ, ஞாயிறு ñāyiṟu, கதிரவன் katiravaṉ, பகலவன் pakalavaṉ, ஆதவன் ātavaṉ, வெய்யோன் veyyōṉ
a star, especially when seen as the centre of any single solar system
சூரியன் cūriyaṉ
light and warmth received from the sun
ஒளி oḷi
to warm or dry in the sunshine
உலர்த்து ularttu, காய்ச்சு kāyccu

sun in Marathi

the star around which the Earth revolves — see also Sun
सूर्य sūrya
a star, especially when seen as the centre of any single solar system
सूर्य sūrya

sun in Urdu

the star around which the Earth revolves — see also Sun
سُورْیَہ sūrya, سُورَج sūraj, خورْشِید xorśīd, رَوی ravī
a star, especially when seen as the centre of any single solar system
سُورَج sūraj, خورْشِید xurśīd, رَوی ravī, سُورْیَہ sūrya, شَمْس śams
light and warmth received from the sun
آفْتاب āftāb
More languagesFewer languages
sun in Bengali
সূর্য śurjo, আফতাব aphtab, রোদ্দুর rōddur, শুরূক śuruk
sun in Telugu
సూర్యుడు sūryuḍu
sun in Malayalam
സൂര്യന് sūryaṉ, സൂര്യൻ sūryaṉ
sun in Kannada
ಸೂರ್ಯ sūrya
sun in Punjabi
ਸੂਰਜ sūraj
sun in Gujarati
સૂર્ય sūrya
sun in Odia
ସୂର୍ଯ୍ୟ surjya
sun in Sanskrit
सूर्य sūrya, रवि ravi, आदित्य āditya, अंशुमत् aṃśumat
sun in Sinhala
ඉර ira, හිරු hiru
sun in Assamese
বেলি beli, সূৰ্য xurz
sun in Nepali
घाम ghām, सूर्य sūrya
sun in Pashto
لمر lmar
sun in Tagalog
araw
sun in Arabic
شَمْس šams, شمس šams, شمش šamš
sun in Malay
matahari, mentari, suria, rawi
sun in Indonesian
matahari, surya
sun in Persian
خْوَرْشِید xwaršīd, آفْتَاب āftāb, شَمْس šams, هور hōr
sun in Thai
ดวงอาทิตย์ duuang-aa-tít, พระอาทิตย์ prá-aa-tít, ตะวัน dtà-wan, ดาวฤกษ์ daao-rə̂ək
sun in Vietnamese
Mặt Trời, mặt trời
sun in Myanmar
နေ ne, သူရီယ suriya., ရဝိန် ra.win, သူရကန် sura.kan
Sindhi
سوُرَجُ sūraju
Dhivehi
އިރު iru
Kashmiri
سِرؠ یہِ sir' yi, آکھتاب ākhtāb, آفتاب āftāb, رَو rav
Dzongkha
ཉི་མ་ nyi ma

Examples of sun in a sentence

  • Latitude could be fixed by the relationship to the North Star or the sun, one of the few things known in the sixteenth century about celestial navigation.1997, Mark Kurlansky, “Chapter 4: 1620: The Rock and the Cod”, in Cod: A Biography of the Fish that Changed the World, Walker, →ISBN:
  • The sun was on the old man's left arm and shoulder and on his back.1952 September 1, Ernest Hemingway, The Old Man and the Sea, New York, N.Y.: Charles Scribner’s Sons, →OCLC, page 67:
  • You see, the President has five jobs, any one of which would be more than a full-time job for one man; but I have to do all five of them between sun and sun.1962, Harry S. Truman, Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: Harry S. Truman, page 651:
  • “Tomorrow at first sun.” Not being much of a morning person, she winced internally.1997, Alan Dean Foster, Howling Stones, page 149:

All 40 example sentences with sun

Synonyms of sun

Forms of sun

Noun
pluralsuns
pluralsun
pluralSuns
alternative formSun.
Verb
third-person singular presentsuns
present participlesunning
past participlesunned
pastsunned
Proper noun
pluralSuns

Plural of sun: suns

Origin of sun

From Middle English soen, son, sone, sonne, sun, sune, sunna, sunne, sunnæ, synne, zonne, zunne, from Old English sunna, sunne, sunnu (“sun”), from Proto-West Germanic *sunnā, from Proto-Germanic *sunnǭ (“sun”), from heteroclitic inanimate Proto-Indo-European *sh₂wen-, oblique of Proto-Indo-European *sóh₂wl̥ (“sun”). Cognates Cognate with Scots sun (“sun”), Yola zin (“sun”), North Frisian san, Sen (“sun”), Saterland Frisian Sunne (“sun”), West Frisian sinne (“sun”), Alemannic German ŝchunna, ŝchunnà, sònnò, sunna, sunnu, Sunnä (“sun”), Bavarian Sun, suna, sune, Sunn, sunne (“sun”), Cimbrian sonde, sunn, zunna (“sun”), Dutch zon, zonne (“sun”), German Sonne (“sun”), Limburgish Ṣon, Sonn, zón (“sun”), Low German Sünn, Sünne (“sun”), Luxembourgish Sonn (“sun”), Mòcheno sunn (“sun”), Vilamovian zun, zunn (“sun”), West Flemish zunne (“sun”), Yiddish זון (zun, “sun”), Icelandic sunna (“sun”), Crimean Gothic sune (“sun”), Gothic 𐍃𐌿𐌽𐌽𐍉 (sunnō, “the Sun”); outside of Germanic, Cornish howl (“sun”), Irish súil (“eye; expectation, hope”), Manx sooill (“eye”), Scottish Gaelic sùil (“eye; vision; glance, look; expectation, hope”), Welsh haul, huan (“sun”), Latin sōl (“sun”), Greek ήλιος...

From Japanese 寸 (sun). Doublet of cun.

From Middle English sunne, from Old English sunna, sunne (“sun; the Sun”), from Proto-West Germanic *sunnā, from Proto-Germanic *sunnǭ, from the heteroclitic inanimate Proto-Indo-European *sh₂wén-, oblique form of *sóh₂wl̥ (“sun; the Sun”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian Sunne, West Frisian sinne, Dutch zon, Old Dutch sunna, German Low German Sünn, Old Saxon sunna, German Sonne, Old High German sunna, Faroese sunna, Icelandic sunna, Gothic 𐍃𐌿𐌽𐌽𐍉 (sunnō). More at sun.

Words formed from sun

Phrases with sun

163 more phrasesFewer phrases

Words that rhyme with sun

48 more rhymesFewer rhymes

Questions about sun

What does sun mean?
Sun means the star that is closest to the Earth.
What is sun in Hindi?
Sun in Hindi is सूर्य (sūrya), सूरज (sūraj), आदित्य (āditya). See Sun meaning in Hindi.
How do you use sun in a sentence?
Latitude could be fixed by the relationship to the North Star or the sun, one of the few things known in the sixteenth century about celestial navigation.
What part of speech is sun?
Sun can be a proper noun, a noun or a verb.
How do you pronounce sun?
Sun is pronounced /sʌn/.

Words near sun in the dictionary

  1. sumwhere
  2. sumxu
  3. sumy
  4. sumō
  5. sumōtori
  6. sun
  7. sun and planet gear
  8. sun and planet gears
  9. sun anemone shrimp
  10. sun animalcule
  11. sun ball

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: sun (page history and authors); Sun (page history and authors); SUN (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: En-uk-sun.ogg, LL-Q1860 (eng)-Persent101-sun.wav.

Cite this entry: “sun.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/sun. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.