Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

day

/deɪ̯/

Word Rarity Common

Frequency: 5.95 in modern English

Syllables
day
IPA
/deɪ̯/
7
Scrabble Score
3
Letters
1
Syllables
3
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

The time when the Sun is above the horizon and it lights the sky.

noun

A period of time equal or almost equal to a full day-night cycle, being 24 hours long.

noun

A period of time equal or almost equal to a full day-night cycle, being 24 hours long.

noun

A period of time equal or almost equal to a full day-night cycle, being 24 hours long.

noun

A 24-hour period beginning at 6am or sunrise.

Informal

noun

A period of time between two set times which mark the beginning and the end of day in a calendar, such as from midnight to the following midnight or (Judaism) from nightfall to the following nightfall.

noun

The rotational period of a planet.

noun

The part of a day period which one spends at one’s job, school, etc.

Example Sentences

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *dʰegʷʰ-? Proto-Germanic *dagaz Proto-West Germanic *dag Old English dæġ Middle English day English day Inherited from Middle English day, from Old English dæġ, from Proto-West Germanic *dag, from Proto-Germanic *dagaz (“day”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰegʷʰ- (“to burn”). Cognates Cognate with Scots day, dei, dey, dy (“day”), Yola daie, dei, dey, die (“day”), North Frisian dai, doi, däi (“day”), Saterland Frisian Dai (“day”), West Frisian dei (“day”), Bavarian Dåg, Tåg (“day”), Central Franconian Daach (“day”), Cimbrian tag, tage (“day”), Dutch dag, dagge (“day”), German Tag (“day”), German Low German Dag, Dagg (“day”), Limburgish Daach, Daag (“day”), Luxembourgish Dag (“day”), Mòcheno ta (“day”), Vilamovian taog (“day”), West Flemish dag (“day”), Yiddish טאָג (tog, “day”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk, and Swedish dag (“day”), Faroese and Icelandic dagur (“day”), Norn dagh (“day”), Crimean Gothic tag (“day”), Gothic 𐌳𐌰𐌲𐍃 (dags, “day”), Vandalic *dag- (“day”); also Breton deviñ (“to burn”), Cornish dewi (“to kindle”), Irish daigh (“fire, flame”), dóigh (“to burn, singe; sear, scorch”), Manx daah (“to scorch, singe; to cauterize”), Scottish Gaelic dòth (“scorch, singe; burn”), Welsh deifio (“to scorch, singe”), Latin foveō (“to warm, keep warm”), Greek τέφρα (téfra, “ash, cinder”), Albanian dhez, ndez (“to kindle, light”), Old Prussian dagis (“summer”), Armenian հրդեհ (hrdeh, “fire”), Sanskrit दह् (dah, “to burn, consume by fire, scorch, roast”).

Origin

Word Breakdown

  • Root: day, dæġ, *dag, *dagaz, *dʰegʷʰ-

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /deɪ̯/
  • British English: /deɪ̯/

Usage

Inflected Forms

Derived Forms

Phrases

Frequently Paired Words

Synonyms

Homonyms

Antonyms

Rhymes With

Questions

How do you pronounce day?
The recorded pronunciation is /deɪ̯/.
What does day mean?
The time when the Sun is above the horizon and it lights the sky.
Where does day come from?
It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce day

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “day”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/deɪ̯/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “day”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “day” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.