overwordExplorer
ENGLISH · A WORD WITH POSSIBILITIES

daylight.

The natural light that is ambient in daytime, being mostly sunlight (both direct and indirect, on either sunny days or cloudy days).

8 characters2 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

noun/ˈdeɪlaɪt/Received-Pronunciation/ˈdeɪˌlaɪt/General-American
  1. The natural light that is ambient in daytime, being mostly sunlight (both direct and indirect, on either sunny days or cloudy days).

    countable · uncountable
    In those days the entire factory was lit only by daylight and was closed at night.
  2. A light source that simulates daylight.

    countable · uncountable
  3. 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.

    countable
  4. The period of time between sunrise and sunset.

    countable · uncountable
    burning daylight
    wasting daylight
  5. Daybreak.

    countable · uncountable
    We had only two hours to work before daylight.
  6. Exposure to public scrutiny.

    countable · uncountable
    Budgeting a spy organization can't very well be done in daylight.
  7. A clear, open space.

    countable · uncountable
    All small running backs instinctively run to daylight.
    He could barely see daylight through the complex clockwork.
  8. The space between platens on a press or similar machinery.

    countable
    The minimum and maximum daylights on an injection molding machine determines the sizes of the items it can make.
  9. Emotional or psychological distance between people, or disagreement.

    countable · figuratively · uncountable
    We completely agree. There's no daylight between us on the issue.
  10. Meaningful or noticeable difference or distinction between two things, especially concepts.

    countable · figuratively · uncountable
    There's not much daylight between saying that the universe is God and saying that God doesn't exist.
  11. The gap between the top of a drinking-glass and the level of drink it is filled with.

    countable · uncountable
Where this word comes from

From Middle English daye-lighte, dey liȝht, dailiȝt, day-liht, dai-liht (also as days lyȝt, daies liht), equivalent to day + light. Cognate with Saterland Frisian Deegeslucht, Daisljoacht (“daylight”), West Frisian deiljocht (“daylight”), Dutch daglicht (“daylight”), German Tageslicht (“daylight”).

verb/ˈdeɪlaɪt/Received-Pronunciation/ˈdeɪˌlaɪt/General-American
  1. To expose to daylight

  2. To provide sources of natural illumination such as skylights or windows.

  3. To allow light in, as by opening drapes.

  4. To run a drainage pipe to an opening from which its contents can drain away naturally.

  5. To gain exposure to the open.

    intransitive
    The seam of coal daylighted at a cliff by the river.
  6. To moonlight (work a second, often illicit job) during the daytime.

    intransitive
Where this word comes from

From Middle English daye-lighte, dey liȝht, dailiȝt, day-liht, dai-liht (also as days lyȝt, daies liht), equivalent to day + light. Cognate with Saterland Frisian Deegeslucht, Daisljoacht (“daylight”), West Frisian deiljocht (“daylight”), Dutch daglicht (“daylight”), German Tageslicht (“daylight”).

FROM WORD TO NAME

Try it on your idea.

daylight has 8 characters. Say it out loud, try it alongside a description of your project, and see whether its meaning fits what you want to create.

daylight studiodaylight workshello, daylight

These are naming prompts. Meanings and pronunciation can vary; existing brand and domain uses have not been checked.

Explore the name generator

A word with a source.

Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.