sunset

English

A sunset (changes in color of the sky).

Etymology

From Middle English son-sett, Sonne set, equivalent to sun +‎ set. In Gower's Confessio Amantis, before 1393.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈsʌnˌsɛt/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ʌnsɛt

Noun

sunset (countable and uncountable, plural sunsets)

1. The moment each evening when the sun disappears below the western horizon.

   at sunset

   • 1829, Edgar Allan Poe, “Tamerlane”, in Al Aaraaf, Tamerlane and Minor Poems:

     ’Twas sunset: when the sun will part
     There comes a sullenness of heart
     To him who still would look upon
     The glory of the summer sun.

2. The changes in color of the sky before and after sunset.
3. (figuratively) The final period of the life of a person or thing.
   • 1799, Thomas Campbell, Pleasure of Hope:

     'Tis the sunset of life gives me mystical lore.

   one's sunset years

4. (attributively) A set termination date.

   The tax increase legislation included a sunset clause requiring renewal to prevent the tax increase from expiring.

5. The region where the sun sets; the west.

Synonyms

• (time): dusk, sundown (US), nightfall, twilight; see also Thesaurus:dusk
• (change in color of the sky at sunset):
• (final period of life): end, final act, swansong
• (attributively: of or relating to the final period of life): last, terminal, twilight

Antonyms

• sunrise

Derived terms

• Harlem sunset
• ride off into the sunset
• sunset clause
• sunset crop
• sunset flip
• sunset industry
• sunset law
• sunset moth
• sunset orange
• Sunset Park
• sunset prayer
• sunset provision
• sunset shell
• sunset town
• sunsetty
• sunset years

Translations

time of day

• Abkhaz: please add this translation if you can
• Afrikaans: sonsondergang (af)
• Arabic: غُرُوب m (ḡurūb), مَغْرِب (ar) m (maḡrib)
• Armenian: մայրամուտ (hy) (mayramut), արևամուտ (hy) (arewamut)
• Avar: тӏерхьин (tʼerx̂in)
• Belarusian: за́хад со́нца m (záxad sónca)
• Bengali: সূর্যাস্ত (bn) (śurjasto), মাগরিব (bn) (magribo)
• Bikol Central: pagsulnop (bcl)
• Bulgarian: залез (bg) m (zalez)
• Burmese: please add this translation if you can
• Catalan: posta de sol f, ocàs (ca) m
• Chechen: please add this translation if you can
• Cherokee: ᏭᏕᎵᎬ (wudeligv)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 日落 (zh) (rìluò)

• Czech: západ slunce m
• Danish: solnedgang (da)
• Dutch: zonsondergang (nl) m
• Elfdalian: suolniðgaungg m
• Esperanto: sunsubiro (eo), sunfalo
• Estonian: päikeseloojang, päikeseloojak (rare)
• Faroese: sólsetur n
• Finnish: auringonlasku (fi), illansuu
• French: coucher de soleil (fr) m
• Galician: posta de sol f, solpor m
• Georgian: მზის ჩასვლა (mzis časvla), დაისი (daisi)
• German: Sonnenuntergang (de) m
• Greek: δύση (el) f (dýsi), ηλιοβασίλεμα (el) n (iliovasílema)
• Greenlandic: seqerngup tarrinnera
• Hebrew: שקיעה (he) (shkiá)
• Hindi: सूर्यास्त (hi) m (sūryāst)
• Hungarian: naplemente (hu), napnyugta (hu)
• Icelandic: sólsetur (is) n, sólarlag (is) n, sólfall n
• Ido: sunokusho (io)
• Indonesian: senja (id)
• Ingrian: päivänlasku
• Italian: tramonto (it) m, crepuscolo (it) m, occaso (it) m
• Japanese: 日没 (ja) (にちぼつ, nichibotsu), 日の入り (ja) (ひのいり, hinoiri)
• Khiamniungan Naga: ōtsīnáp
• Korean: 해넘이 (haeneomi), 황혼(黃昏) (ko) (hwanghon), 일락(日落) (illak)
• Latin: crepusculum, occasus m
• Latvian: saulriets (lv) m
• Low German: Sünnünnergang m
• Luxembourgish: Sonnenënnergang m
• Macedonian: зајдисонце (zajdisonce)
• Malayalam: അസ്തമയം (ml) (astamayaṁ)
• Manchu: ᡧᡠᠨ
  ᡩᠣᠰᡳᠮᠪᡳ (šun dosimbi), ᡧᡠᠨ
  ᡨᡠᡥᡝᠮᠪᡳ (šun tuhembi)
• Mizo: ni tlâk
• Mongolian: please add this translation if you can
• Nahuatl: aqui in tonatiuh
• Navajo: iʼííʼą́ągo
• Norman: couochi du solé m
• Northern Sami: beaivvášluoitádeapmi
• Norwegian: solnedgang (no) m

  Nynorsk: soleglad n

• Old English: sunnan setlgang m
• Old High German: sunnūn sedalgang m
• Oromo: lixa biiftuu
• Ossetian: хуры аныгуылд (xury anyg°yld)
• Panamint: tape ikanna
• Plautdietsch: Sonnunjagank m
• Polish: zmierzch (pl) m, zachód słońca (pl) m
• Portuguese: crepúsculo (pt) m, (superseded) pôr-do-sol (pt) m, pôr do sol (pt) m, poente (pt), ocaso (pt) m, sol-pôr (pt) m
• Romanian: apus (ro) n, asfințire (ro) f, crepuscul (ro) n
• Romansch: rendida dal sulegl f
• Russian: захо́д со́лнца m (zaxód sólnca), зака́т (ru) m (zakát), (вечерняя) заря́ (ru) f (zarjá), захо́д (ru) m (zaxód)
• Scottish Gaelic: dol fodha na grèine m
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: залазак сунца m

  Roman: zalazak sunca m

• Sicilian: tracoḍḍu m,
• Slovene: sončni zahod m
• Sorbian:

  Upper Sorbian: chowanje słónca n

• Southern Altai: ажар (ažar)
• Southern Ohlone: sosoronin
• Southern Sami: vælloe, biejjievælloe
• Spanish: puesta del sol f, ocaso (es) m, atardecer (es) m, anochecer (es) m
• Swahili: machweo (sw)
• Swedish: solnedgång (sv) c
• Tagalog: sibsib
• Tatar: кояш бату (qoyaş batu)
• Telugu: సూర్యాస్తమయము (te) (sūryāstamayamu)
• Thai: เพล้โพล้, ตะวันตก (th) (dtà-wan-dtòk), ตอนค่ำ, ตกค่ำ
• Tibetan: ཉི་ནུབ (nyi nub), ཉི་རྒས (nyi rgas)
• Tocharian B: kauṃ-yaptsi
• Turkish: gün batımı (tr)
• Tuvan: кежээки хаяа (kejeeki xayaa)
• Ukrainian: за́хід со́нця m (záxid sóncja)
• Vietnamese: hoàng hôn (vi)
• Volapük: solamodonikam (vo), modonikam sola
• Welsh: machlud haul (cy) m, machlud (cy) m
• Yiddish: זונפֿאַרגאַנג m (zunfargang), זונפֿאַרגאַנגען m pl (zunfargangen), זון־אונטערגאַנג m (zun-untergang), זון־אונטערגאַנגען m pl (zun-untergangen)

changes in color of sky at sunset

• Arabic: غُرُوب اَلشَّمْس (ar) m (ḡurūb aš-šams), غُرُوب اَلشَّمْس (ar) m (ḡurūb aš-šams)
• Burmese: please add this translation if you can
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 黃昏 / 黄昏 (zh) (huánghūn)

• Czech: západ slunce m
• Danish: solnedgang (da) c
• Dutch: zonsondergang (nl) m
• Estonian: päikeseloojang, päikeseloojak (rare)
• Finnish: iltarusko (fi)
• French: crépuscule (fr) m
• Galician: arrebol m
• German: Sonnenuntergang (de) m, Abendrot (de) n
• Hebrew: שקיעה (he) (shkiá)
• Hungarian: alkonypír (hu)
• Icelandic: sólsetur (is) n, sólarlag (is) n
• Italian: tramonto (it) m, crepuscolo (it) m
• Japanese: 夕焼け (ja) (ゆうやけ, yūyake), 黄昏 (ja) (たそがれ, tasogare)
• Khmer: ថ្ងៃលិច (thngay lɨc)
• Korean: 저녁놀 (jeonyeongnol), 황혼(黃昏) (ko) (hwanghon)
• Kurdish:

  Central Kurdish: ڕۆژ ئاوا (roj awa)

• Latin: crepusculum
• Macedonian: залез m (zalez), зајдисонце n (zajdisonce)
• Maori: kokomea
• Navajo: iʼííʼą́
• Polish: zachód słońca (pl) m
• Portuguese: crepúsculo (pt) m, pôr do sol (pt) m
• Romanian: apus (ro) n, crepuscul (ro) n
• Russian: захо́д со́лнца m (zaxód sólnca), зака́т (ru) m (zakát), (вечерняя) заря́ f ((večernjaja) zarjá)
• Scottish Gaelic: dol fodha na grèine m
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: за́лаз m, залазак сунца, залазница

  Roman: zálaz (sh) m, zalazak sunca, zalaznica (sh)

• Spanish: crepúsculo (es) m
• Swedish: solnedgång (sv) c
• Welsh: machlud haul (cy) m, machlud (cy) m

final period of life

• Arabic: خَاتِمَة f (ḵātima), قَيَامَة f (qayāma)
• Bulgarian: залез (bg) m (zalez)
• Danish: alderens efterår n
• Estonian: eluloojang
• Finnish: auringonlasku (fi), iltarusko (fi), elämän ehtoo
• French: crépuscule (fr) m
• German: Lebensabend (de) m
• Greek: δύση (el) f (dýsi)
• Hungarian: alkony (hu)
• Icelandic: sólsetur (is) n
• Italian: tramonto (it) m
• Japanese: 黄昏 (ja) (たそがれ, tasogare)
• Khiamniungan Naga: ōtsīnáp
• Korean: 황혼(黃昏) (ko) (hwanghon)
• Latin: crepusculum
• Macedonian: залез m (zalez)
• Malayalam: അസ്തമയം (ml) (astamayaṁ)
• Mizo: chawhnû, ni tlâk
• Polish: zmierzch (pl) m
• Portuguese: crepúsculo (pt) m
• Romanian: declin (ro) n, apus (ro) n
• Russian: зака́т (ru) m (zakát)
• Spanish: ocaso (es) m
• Welsh: machlud haul (cy) m, machlud (cy) m

attributively: of or relating to the final period of life

• Arabic: خِتَامِي m (ḵitāmī)
• Finnish: iltaruskon (fi)
• Hungarian: alkony (hu)
• Polish: zmierzch (pl) m

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Albanian: ^{(please verify)} perëndimi i diellit
• Lithuanian: ^{(please verify)} saulėlydis m (1, 3); ^{(please verify)} žara f (2)
• Old English: ^{(please verify)} sunnansetlgang m
• Woiwurrung: ^{(please verify)} kroong kontew-ngumi

Verb

sunset (third-person singular simple present sunsets, present participle sunsetting, simple past and past participle sunsetted)

1. (business, politics, transitive) To phase out.

   We’ll be sunsetting version 1.9 of the software shortly after releasing version 2.0 next quarter.

   • 2011 April 19, Sumit Paul-Choudhury, “Digital legacy: The fate of your online soul”, in NewScientist‎^[1]:

     Last December, Yahoo announced plans to “sunset” more well-known services, including the pioneering social bookmarking service del.icio.us.

Translations

phase out — see also phase out

• Danish: udfase
• Hungarian: kivezet (hu), megszüntet (hu)

See also

• moonset

Anagrams

• unsets