1
a
often Sun
: the luminous celestial body around which the earth and other planets revolve, from which they receive heat and light, which is composed mainly of hydrogen and helium, and which has a mean distance from earth of about 93,000,000 miles (150,000,000 kilometers), a linear diameter of 864,000 miles (1,390,000 kilometers), and a mass 332,000 times greater than earth
b
: a celestial body like the sun : star
2
: the heat or light radiated from the sun
played in the sun all day
3
: one resembling the sun (as in warmth or brilliance)
4
: the rising or setting of the sun
from sun to sun
sunned; sunning
: to expose to or as if to the rays of the sun
: to sun oneself
Sunday
Examples of sun in a Sentence
Noun
The rain has stopped and the sun is shining.
The sun rises in the east and sets in the west.
the warmth of the sun's rays
They dream of traveling to distant suns.
Try to keep out of the sun.
The cat lay basking in the sun.
Verb
People sunned themselves on the hillside.
Recent Examples on the Web
Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 16 Nov. 2025
The eruption was similar in some ways to those unleashed by our sun, such as the solar storms that graced the night skies with auroras last week on Earth, but at a much grander — and ominous — scale.
—Ashley Strickland, CNN Money, 16 Nov. 2025
Sheeka Sanahori, Outside, 11 Nov. 2025
Mickey sat at the controls while Jean and Kelly sunned on the aft deck.
—David Wright Faladé, New Yorker, 28 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sun
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Noun
Thinning out branches will prevent leaves from shading fruit, which may not ripen fully if there’s not enough sun.
—Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 16 Nov. 2025
The eruption was similar in some ways to those unleashed by our sun, such as the solar storms that graced the night skies with auroras last week on Earth, but at a much grander — and ominous — scale.
—Ashley Strickland, CNN Money, 16 Nov. 2025
Verb
Tour guide Richard Rhodes maneuvered his Carolina Skiff boat closer than I’d ever been to the species—close enough to take a selfie with a couple of gators sunning on nearby peat bogs.
—Sheeka Sanahori, Outside, 11 Nov. 2025
Mickey sat at the controls while Jean and Kelly sunned on the aft deck.
—David Wright Faladé, New Yorker, 28 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sun
Cite this Entry
“Sun.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sun. Accessed 21 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
sun
1 of 2 noun1
a
: the star around which the planets revolve, from which they receive heat and light, and which has an average distance from the earth of about 93,000,000 miles (150,000,000 kilometers), a diameter of 864,000 miles (1,390,000 kilometers), and a mass 332,000 times greater than earth
b
: a star like the sun
2
: the heat or light given off by the sun : sunshine
3
: one resembling the sun usually in brilliance
4
: the rising or setting of the sun
from sun to sun
sun
2 of 2 verb
sunned; sunning
1
: to expose to or as if to the rays of the sun
2
: to sun oneself
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