Daylight

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈdeɪlaɪt/

Origin

From day + light

Full definition of daylight

Noun

1. The light from the Sun, as opposed to that from any other source.
2. A light source that simulates daylight.
3. (countable, photometry) The intensity distribution of light over the visible spectrum generated by the Sun under various conditions or by other light sources intended to simulate natural daylight.
4. The period of time between sunrise and sunset.
   We should get home while it's still daylight.
5. Daybreak.
   We had only two hours to work before daylight.
• 1835, Sir John Ross, Sir James Clark Ross, Narrative of a Second Voyage in Search of a North-west Passage …, Volume 1, pp.284-5Towards the following morning, the thermometer fell to 5°; and at daylight, there was not an atom of water to be seen in any direction.
6. Exposure to public scrutiny.
   Budgeting a spy organization can't very well be done in daylight.
7. A clear, open space.
   All small running backs instinctively run to daylight.
   He could barely see daylight through the complex clockwork.
   Finally, after weeks of work on the project, they could see daylight.
8. (countable, machinery) The space between platens on a press or similar machinery.
   The minimum and maximum daylights on an injection molding machine determines the sizes of the items it can make.
9. (idiomatic) Emotional or psychological distance between people, or disagreement.
   We completely agree. There's no daylight between us on the issue.

Synonyms

• daytime
• morning

Antonyms

• night
• darkness

Derived terms

• broad daylight, in broad daylight

Verb

1. To expose to daylight
2. (architecture) To provide sources of natural illumination such as skylights or windows.
3. To allow light in, as by drawing drapes.
4. (landscaping, civil engineering) To run a drainage pipe to an opening from which its contents can drain away naturally.
5. (intransitive) To gain exposure to the open.The seam of coal daylighted at a cliff by the river.