sunless

adjective

ˈsən-ləs How to pronounce sunless (audio)
Definition of sunlessnext
as in dark
causing or marked by an atmosphere lacking in cheer mental patients who were once condemned to spend their lives in the sunless confines of a state asylum

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of sunless His eyes are wrapped in gauze, and his hair is the grey of a sunless afternoon. — Armin Rosen, The Washington Examiner, 9 Jan. 2026 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 See All Example Sentences for sunless
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sunless
  1. dark
  2. bleak
  3. lonely
  4. desolate
  5. depressive
  6. depressing
  7. somber
  8. gray
Adjective
  • The refreshing under-eye treatments are formulated to smooth, firm, and brighten crow’s feet and dark circles.
    — Kyra Surgent, InStyle, 4 Nov. 2026
  • The helmet uses a carbon-fiber shell to help control weight and comes supplied with clear and dark visors, as well as a Pinlock anti-fog insert.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 3 Nov. 2026
Definition of dark
Adjective
  • His isolated existence is bleak, especially for such a bighearted person naturally inclined to love others.
    — Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 5 Nov. 2026
  • But in a bleak indicator of the current political climate, the bait was inflammatory content about Muslims.
    — Harmeet Kaur, CNN Money, 3 Nov. 2026
Definition of bleak
Adjective
  • Popular imagination dismissed her as one of the lonely and disappointed women in a cardigan who peopled her novels, her books discarded as conservative and constricting.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 2 Nov. 2026
  • Chenault’s stance seems an increasingly lonely one in corporate America.
    — Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson, semafor.com, 30 Oct. 2026
Definition of lonely
Adjective
  • From desolate deserts to cut-off civilisations, wild and remote destinations are emerging as the places travellers will be talking about most in 2027.
    — Luke Abrahams, Vogue, 27 Oct. 2026
  • The road that leads to the Edna Mahan Correctional Facility for Women is long and desolate.
    — Anja Aronowsky Cronberg, New Yorker, 24 Oct. 2026
Definition of desolate
Adjective
  • And more than a third of perimenopausal and postmenopausal women worldwide report depressive symptoms.
    — Laura Ungar, Los Angeles Times, 3 Nov. 2026
  • Sleep disturbances are common in depression, and night owls (who tend to get less sleep than early birds) are likely to have more and worse depressive symptoms.
    — Payal Dhar, Scientific American, 27 Oct. 2026
Definition of depressive
Adjective
  • The Ruhr Valley, in contrast, might be Europe’s vastest, most depressing suburb.
    — Kristian Vistrup Madsen, Artforum, 1 Nov. 2026
  • The Mongolian restaurant is in the city center, dingy and depressing.
    — Aube Rey Lescure, Longreads, 29 Oct. 2026
Definition of depressing
Adjective
  • Over the decades, Rockwell tried his hand at a mix of projects—somber indies like sci-fi drama Moon (2009), studio awards contenders including The Green Mile (1999), and mainstream fare like Iron Man 2 (2010).
    — Savannah Walsh, Vanity Fair, 5 Nov. 2026
  • Stacey Aglok MacDonald and Alethea Arnaquq-Baril’s series goes in a more somber, ruminative direction in the back half of the eight new episodes premiering today on Netflix, balancing the season’s entertaining yet repetitive early episodes.
    — Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 5 Nov. 2026
Definition of somber
Adjective
  • The cool-gray Georgetown men’s basketball team used a red-hot performance from deep to spark an 86-74 win over Maryland.
    — Des Bieler, Washington Post, 8 Nov. 2026
  • The Vatican said Saturday that another 10,000 had attended, despite the morning rain and blustery, gray skies.
    — ISABEL DEBRE, Arkansas Online, 8 Nov. 2026
Definition of gray

Browse Nearby Words

sun lamps
sunless
sunlight
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Sunless.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sunless. Accessed 11 Nov. 2026.

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