Meaning

A burn on the skin caused by excess exposure to the sun's rays..

Definitions by Sense

1. A burn on the skin caused by excess exposure to the sun's rays.
2. A burn on the tissue of crop plants or their fruits (especially if they are rich in water like tomatoes, grapes, apples, gooseberries) caused by excess exposure to the sun's rays.
3. (rare) Suntan.
4. (intransitive) To receive a sunburn.
5. (transitive) To burn or tan (someone's skin) by the sun; to allow (a part of one's body) to become sunburnt.

Example Sentences

The neutral colours showed off her café au lait sunburn.

c. 1613, John Webster, The Duchess of Malfi, London: D.N. and T.C., 1678, Act V, Scene 2, p. 64, I have brought Your grace a Salamanders skin, to keep you From sun-burning.

1724, Aaron Hill, The Plain Dealer, No. 81, 28 December, 1724, London: S. Richardson and A. Wilde, Volume 2, p. 199, […] there is a Country, in the World, call’d Turkey; where Women are secur’d against the Danger of Sun-burning, by being kept out of the open Air, and lock’d up, like other Jewels, in Places where no Mischief can reach ’em.

All foliage is necessary in Texas to keep the tomato fruit from sunburning.

My Aunt charg’d me not to pull off my Glove for fear of Sun-burning my hand.

As we crossed the Colorado-Utah border I saw God in the sky in the form of huge gold sunburning clouds above the desert […]

“Oh shoot, I’ve sunburned the top half of my boobs,” she said, frowning down her chest.

If you are serious about protecting your eyes, look into wearing goggles or alpine glasses that protect the sides of the eyes as well as the direct path of light into them. I once hiked up Mary’s Glacier wearing only a hat. That night after the hike I couldn’t sleep. I had sunburnt my eyes. It felt like hot pokers were being stuffed into my head. I could not open my eyes for four days.

Word Forms

• sunburns
• sunburning
• sunburned
• sunburnt

Synonyms for sunburn

Related Words

When Should You Use Sunburn?

Use sunburn when its meaning, tone and grammar fit the full sentence. A synonym is not always a direct replacement.

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