sunless

adjective

sun·​less ˈsən-ləs 

1

: lacking sunshine : dark

In the bay's sunless middle depths, other-worldly creatures drift through the darkness …

—Tom Waters

2

: cheerless

But now and then he gave us a sermon … some would call a very good one; but sunless and severe.

—Anne Brontë

Synonyms of sunless

• dark
• bleak
• lonely
• darkening
• desolate
• depressive
• depressing
• somber
• gray
• cold
• solemn
• murky
• lonesome
• blue

Examples of sunless in a Sentence

mental patients who were once condemned to spend their lives in the sunless confines of a state asylum

Recent Examples on the Web

To avoid a rash, reduce other risks of tanning, and protect your overall skin health, consider switching to a sunless self-tanner. —Carrie Madormo, Health, 24 Oct. 2025

Earth’s substantial atmosphere and geomagnetic field block most (but not all) of this bombardment, and the sunless interiors of worlds without these properties still get protection from overlying material. —Emma R. Hasson, Scientific American, 17 Aug. 2025

As a safer alternative, many people opt for sunless tanning methods such as fake tan products or sprays. —Lucy Notarantonio, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 June 2025

The setting is oppressive — cramped, sunless rooms in which workers push out pant after pant, shirt after shirt, vest after vest — but Wang’s gaze is never pitiful or exploitative. —Devika Girish, New York Times, 2 May 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1589, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

sunless

adjective

sun·​less ˈsən-ləs 

: lacking sunshine : dark