[Elamur Dictionary](https://md.dictionary.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://dictionary.elamur.ai/free/en/english/sundial/)

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# sundial

noun (a sundial, sundials)

«sundial» in the English dictionary: everyday — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

An old instrument that shows the time of day by the shadow that a pointer (the gnomon) casts on a flat dial marked with hours. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/sundial/#m1)

### In the lessons

In science and history lessons a sundial shows how the Sun seems to move across the sky; as the Earth turns, the shadow moves round the dial. It only works when the Sun shines. Pupils make their own with a stick and chalk marks.

### Examples

- The sundial in the garden shows it is about three o'clock. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/sundial/#x1)
- A sundial does not work at night or on cloudy days. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/sundial/#x2)
- We made a sundial with a pencil and a paper plate. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/sundial/#x3)
- The shadow on the sundial moves as the Earth turns. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/sundial/#x4)
- Old churches often have sundials on their walls. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/sundial/#x5)
- The shadow is shortest at noon, when the Sun is highest. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/sundial/#x6)

### Note

One word: sun + dial. The shadow moves «clockwise» in the northern hemisphere (that is where clockwise comes from) and the other way in the southern hemisphere. Sundial time can differ from clock time.

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «sundial» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/sundial/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«sundial» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/sundial.html) on Mova free.