sunrise
/ˈsʌnɹaɪz/noun, verb
sunrise is spelled S-U-N-R-I-S-E: 7 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 6.6 times per million words in written English, the 9,313th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, sunrise means “The time of day when the sun appears above the eastern horizon” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of sunrise is sunrises.
How many letters and syllables are in sunrise?
| Letters | 7: S-U-N-R-I-S-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 6.6 times per million words; the 9,313th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is sunrise?
Sunrise appears 6.6 times per million words in written English, the 9,313th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce sunrise?
- US /ˈsʌnɹaɪz/
Sunrise has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-ca-sunrise.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of sunrise
- sunrises plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- sunrising participle, present
- sunrised participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does sunrise mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
The time of day when the sun appears above the eastern horizon.
I'll meet you at the docks at sunrise.
- 2
The change in color of the sky at dawn.
Did you see the beautiful sunrise this morning?
- 3
Any great awakening.
It was the sunrise of her spirit.
verb
- 1
To phase in.
- 2
rareTo awake.
- 3
rareTo cheer up, brighten, or illuminate.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Sunrise in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense time of day:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | lever du soleil, potron-minet |
| German | Sonnenaufgang |
| Portuguese | nascer do sol, aurora |
| Spanish | salida del sol, salida de sol, salida solar, orto |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does sunrise come from?
From Middle English sonne-rys, sunne ryse, equivalent to sun + rise. Compare Middle English son risyng, sunne rijsyng, sonne-rysing (“sunrise”, literally “sun rising”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).