sun dog

noun

1
: parhelion
2
: a small nearly round halo on the parhelic circle most frequently just outside the halo of 22 degrees

Examples of sun dog in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
His soldiers learned much from the Inuit, including building igloos, deciphering the meaning of snowdrifts, ice fishing, hunting and butchering caribou — and observing the moon dog and sun dog. — Norimitsu Onishi Nasuna Stuart-Ulin, New York Times, 4 June 2023 By exposing for the sun dog, so that some of the color in those bright highlights would be retained, the foreground wound up dark and rather murky. — Tom Yulsman, Discover Magazine, 10 Oct. 2014

Word History

First Known Use

1635, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of sun dog was in 1635

Rhymes for sun dog

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Browse Nearby Words

sun disk
sun dog
sundown
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Cite this Entry

“Sun dog.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sun%20dog. Accessed 26 Apr. 2025.

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Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about sun dog

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