sunburn
- 01 B1 Intermediate
n.red, painful skin caused by spending too much time in the sun without protection.
n.an inflammation of the skin caused by overexposure to ultraviolet radiation from the sun.
Simple“She had a nasty sunburn on her shoulders after a day at the beach.”
In context“The patient presented with a severe sunburn and mild dehydration after neglecting to reapply sunscreen during the hike.”
UsageUncountable when referring to the condition generally, but countable when referring to a specific instance.
Synonymserythema - 02 B1 Intermediate
v.to get red, painful skin because you stayed in the sun too long.
v.to suffer from or cause a sunburn through exposure to ultraviolet rays.
Simple“I tend to sunburn easily, so I always wear a hat and long sleeves.”
In context“If you stay out in this heat without any shade, you will sunburn within twenty minutes.”
UsageThe past tense and past participle can be either 'sunburned' or 'sunburnt'.
PitfallI am sunburned easily. I sunburn easily.Use the active voice 'sunburn' for a general tendency, or the adjective 'sunburnt' to describe your current state.
- 03 C2 Proficiency
n.damage to the leaves or fruit of a plant caused by too much direct sunlight.
n.a physiological disorder in plants where fruit or foliage is damaged by intense solar radiation.
Simple“The tomatoes developed white patches of sunburn during the record-breaking heatwave.”
In context“Orchard managers often apply protective sprays to prevent sunburn on sensitive apple varieties during peak summer months.”
UsageCommonly used in agriculture and botany.
Synonymssunscald
From Middle English sunne burnen, sonne brennen, *sunne brennen (suggested by derivatives sonne brennynge, sunne brennynge (“sunburn”, literally “sun-burning”) and sunne brente (“sunburnt”), equivalent to sun + burn. Compare West Frisian sinnebrân (“sunburn”), Dutch zonnebrand (“sunburn”), German Sonnenbrand (“sunburn”), Swedish solbränna (“sunburn”), and Icelandic sólbruni (“sunburn”), as well as Old English sunbryne (“sunburn”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.