day

Reading level: easy

Estimated CEFR level: A1 — Beginner

Estimated from word frequency; not an official CEFR classification.

Definition

  1. noun time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
  2. noun some point or period in time
  3. noun a day assigned to a particular purpose or observance

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English day, from Old English dæġ, from Proto-West Germanic *dag, from Proto-Germanic *dagaz (“day”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰegʷʰ- (“to burn”). Cognates Cognate with Scots day, dei, dey, dy (“day”), Yola daie, dei, dey, die (“day”), North Frisian dai, doi, däi (“day”), Saterland Frisian Dai (“day”), West Frisian dei (“day”), Bavarian Dåg, Tåg (“day”), Central Franconian Daach (“day”), Cimbrian tag, tage (“day”), Dutch dag, dagge (“day”), German Tag (“day”), German Low German Dag, Dagg (“day”), Limburgish Daach, Daag (“day”), Luxembourgish Dag (“day”), Mòcheno ta (“day”), Vilamovian taog (“day”), West Flemish dag (“day”), Yiddish טאָג (tog, “day”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk, and Swedish dag (“day”), Faroese and Icelandic dagur (“day”), Norn dagh (“day”), Crimean Gothic tag (“day”), Gothic 𐌳𐌰𐌲𐍃 (dags, “day”), Vandalic *dag- (“day”); also Breton deviñ (“to burn”), Cornish dewi (“to kindle”), Irish daigh (“fire, flame”), dóigh (“to burn, singe; sear, scorch”), Manx daah (“to scorch, singe; to cauterize”), Scottish Gaelic dòth (“scorch, singe; burn”), Welsh deifio (“to scorch, singe”), Latin foveō (“to warm, keep warm”), Greek τέφρα (téfra, “ash, cinder”), Albanian dhez, ndez (“to kindle, light”), Old Prussian dagis (“summer”), Armenian հրդեհ (hrdeh, “fire”), Sanskrit दह् (dah, “to burn, consume by fire, scorch, roast”).

In classic literature

Synonyms

twenty-four hours, twenty-four hour period, 24-hour interval, solar day, mean solar day

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