sun dog en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- /ˈsʌn ˌdɔɡ/ (General-American)
- /-ˌdɑɡ/ (General-American, cot-caught-merger)
- (Southern-England) audio
- /ˈsʌn dɒɡ/ (Received-Pronunciation)
Etymology
PIE word *sóh₂wl̥ From sun + dog (“(figurative) a visible atmospheric or meteorological phenomenon”) ; metaphorically refers to the bright spots of light that appear to "dog" or follow the real sun, much like a dog follows its owner.
Meanings
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A bright spot in the sky, usually one of two on a parhelic circle on both sides of the sun (or occasionally above and below it), caused by the refraction of the sun's image through ice crystals.
A sun dog on each side of the sun foretell a bad storm in the night.
1935, Harry Middleton Hyatt, “Weather”, in Folk-lore from Adams County Illinois, New York, N.Y.: Memoirs of the Alma Egan Hyatt Foundation, →OCLC, paragraph 678, page 26:Two sundogs dread famine bring / A bloody war, and new-crown'd king.
1837 April, F. [pseudonym], “Notices by the Way Side—from Notes Taken in 1821. No. IV. Sacket’s Harbor.”, in The Monthly Traveller, or Spirit of the Periodical Press. […], volume VIII, number 4, Boston, Mass.: Badger & Porter, […], →OCLC, page 146, column 1:The good fog heard—like a splitten sail, to the left and right she tore, / And they saw the sun-dogs in the haze and the seal upon the shore.
1896, Rudyard Kipling, “[The Seven Seas.] The Rhyme of the Three Sealers.”, in The Seven Seas, London: Methuen & Co. […], →OCLC, page 68:Every rainbow and every sundog remind us, "Yes, you are human and you often fail to live up to God's standards. But God's covenant is eternal, and God loves you nonetheless and not the less."
2000, Michael J. Coyner, “Sundogs and Other Signs”, in Prairie Wisdom: Reflections on Life in the Dakotas, Nashville, Tenn.: Abingdon Press, →ISBN, page 126:Long understood also, is the fact that sundogs—colored spots of light to the right or left of the sun or moon—belong in the same class with halos.
1941 August 31, “When there’s a ring around the sun”, in John T. Curtis, editor, The Philadelphia Inquirer, volume 225, number 62, Philadelphia, Pa.: The Philadelphia Inquirer Co., →ISSN, →OCLC, “Everybody’s Weekly” section, page 2, column 4:Sometimes it is clear, and at midday the sun looks at us for a moment over the hills to the south. The northern lights flame in the sky, and the sun-dogs dance, and the air is filled with frost-dust.
1905, Jack London, “The Sun-dog Trail”, in Love of Life and Other Stories, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., published September 1907 (December 1907 printing), →OCLC, pages 223–224:Sun-dogs, called Mock Suns, becauſe they reſemble the ſun, are tvvo ſpots that frequently appear in a cloud vvhen the ſun ſhines through it, and vvhen he is about 15 to 20 degrees above the horizon. […] One is ſituated on the north, and the other on the ſouth ſide of the ſun. The refraction and reflection of the rays of light are the cauſe of theſe phænomena.
1791, Samuel Stearns, “Of the Cause of the Rain-bow, Meteors, Sun-dogs, Jack-with-a-lanthorn, Hurricanes, Trade-winds, Monsoons, Whirlwinds, Water-spouts, Clouds, Rain, Hail, Snow, Frost, Mist, Fog, and Dew— […]”, in The American Oracle. Comprehending an Account of Recent Discoveries in the Arts and Sciences, […], London: […] J[ames] Lackington, […]; and J. Parsons, […], →OCLC, page 167:Some videos seem to show sun dogs jumping around. […] No one is sure what causes these "jumping" sun dogs. Some scientists think the electric field from lightning in the cloud makes the ice crystals move. When the crystals move, the sun dog moves. But this is just a hypothesis. No one is sure what causes this phenomenon.
2017, Suzanne Garbe, “Sun Dogs”, in The Science behind Wonders of the Sun: Sun Dogs, Lunar Eclipses and Green Flash, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Raintree, Capstone Global Library, →ISBN, page 28:December […] the 28th [1714], the Sun being an Hour high, appeared a Sun-Dog or Parhelion, the Sky full of flying Clouds.
1749, Thomas Short, A General Chronological History of the Air, Weather, Seasons, Meteors, &c. […], volume I, London: […] T[homas] Longman, […]; and A[ndrew] Millar, […], →OCLC, page 474:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| sun-dog | alternative | lexicographic | |
| sundog | alternative | lexicographic | |
| sun dogs | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Coordinates
paraselene · moon dog · mock moon
Hypernyms
Relateds
Synonyms
Translations (85)
hu parhelion (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · id parhelion (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · sl parhelij (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · pl parhelion (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · cs vedlejší slunce (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · uk паргелій (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · nn solulv (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · hu melléknap (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · cy parhelion (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · fa خورشید مجازی (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · he כלבי השמש (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · lb parhelion (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · cs paslunce (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · la parhēlium (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · cy ffug haul (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · da bisol (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · ckb خۆرەدرۆزنە (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · is úlfakreppa (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · ml സൺ ഡോഗ്സ് (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · fi sivuaurinko (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · nrn gallj (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · kk сағым күн (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · sh pàsūnce (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · nv shá bitłʼájiiłchiiʼ (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · sv bisol (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · lb niewesonn (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · nl bijzon (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · is aukasól (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · sl pasonce (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · sh lȁžno sȗnce (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · sv vädersol (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · pt falso sol (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · it parelio (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · hu naphalo (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · ur آفتاب کاذب (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · vi mặt trời ma (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · es parhelio (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · bg лъжливо слънце (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · ru парге́лий (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · et ebapäiksed (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · vi mặt trời giả (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · sh па̀сӯнце (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · is úlfur (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · ar شمس كاذبة (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · bn মায়া সূর্য (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · hu vaknap (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · de Nebensonne (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · fi auringonsappi (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · nn bisol (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · tr yalancı güneş (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · ug ساختا قۇياش (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · fa خورشید کاذب (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · ru ло́жное со́лнце (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · ro halou (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · fa عکس خورشید (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · mk лажно сонце (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · nb bisol (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · cs parhelium (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · pt parélio (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · hu cimbora (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · ko 환일 (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · bg пархелий (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · ca parheli (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · is hjásól (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · mi imurangi (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · cmn 幻日 (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · fa پیراخورشید (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · nb solhund (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · pdt Biesonn (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · et päikesesapp (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · et kõrvalpäiksed (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · fr parhélie (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · pl słońce poboczne (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · is gíll (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · af parhelium (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · sh ла̏жно су̑нце (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · cy ci haul (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · hu napkutya (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · ja 幻日 (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · hy պարհելիում (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · nl parhelium (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · taa dedzeyi noxwdalk'onh (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · sv solvarg (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · eu parelio (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals) · et parheelia (bright spot in the sky caused by the refraction of the sun’s image through ice crystals)