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These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'equinox.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Equinox descends from aequus, the Latin word for "equal," and nox, the Latin word for "night"—a fitting history for a word that describes days of the year when the daytime and nighttime are equal in length. In the northern hemisphere, the vernal equinox marks the first day of spring and occurs when the sun moves north across the equator. (Vernal comes from the Latin word ver, meaning "spring.") The autumnal equinox marks the first day of autumn in the northern hemisphere and occurs when the sun crosses the equator going south. In contrast, a solstice is either of the two moments in the year when the sun's apparent path is farthest north or south from the equator.
: a day when day and night are the same length
See words that rhyme with equinox Spanish Central: Translation of equinox Nglish: Translation of equinox for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of equinox for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about equinox
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