sunbeam
/sˈʌnbˌim/
Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.65 in modern English
Meaning
noun
A ray of sunlight; especially, a demarcated, narrow, and intense (relative to ambient light) ray of sunlight (as revealed by, for example, its diffraction among dust particles).
noun
Any of various lycaenid butterflies of the genus Curetis.
noun
Any hummingbird of the genus Aglaeactis.
noun
An item of cutlery or crockery laid out on a table, but not used, and which can be returned to the drawer without being washed.
Australian usage; Colloquial; Dated
name
An unincorporated community in Moffat County, Colorado, United States.
name
An unincorporated community in Mercer County, Illinois, United States.
name
An unincorporated community in Logan County, West Virginia, United States.
Example Sentences
- "Near-synonym: sunshaft (narrow, demarcated)"
- "I cut-in various other material to this; for instance, a shot of a rushing brook in springtime, with dancing sunbeams reflected in the water; of birds splashing in the village pond; and, finally, of a laughing child."
- "Similarly, the rays diverging from the sun will pass by you and converge on the point directly opposite the sun, the shadow of your head. All sunbeams, and thus all shadows, appear to converge there.[…]Only perspective makes all shadows appear to converge on the antisolar point. But this point is also the center of the rainbow, so as you look at the rainbow, all sunbeams and shadows will lie along radii of the bow as they flow straight to its center."
- "I had frequently had to explain to cameramen that only in the early morning or late in the evening did sunbeams fall from the window as flat as they were usually found in films. The sun being higher during the hours of work, another way of showing sunbeams had to be found."
- "DOCTOR: You seem to be our best bet so far, don't you think so, Mel? Mel? Where's Mel? DEPUTY: No, no, no, sunbeam. You're coming with us."
Etymology
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: sonnebem, sunnbēam
Usage
- British usage
- Australian usage
- Colloquial
- Dated