skysky /skaɪ/ ●●● S2 W2 noun (plural skies) 
The sky grew dark, and a cold rain began to fall. A shooting star sped across the night sky.in the sky There wasn’t a cloud in the sky.2skies [plural] a word meaning ‘sky’, used especially when describing the weather or what the sky looks like in a place: a land of blue skies and warm sunshine The skies were overcast, and it was chilly and damp.3the sky’s the limit spoken used to say that there is no limit to what someone can achieve, spend, win etc: Francis believes the sky’s the limit for the young goalkeeper. → pie in the sky at pie(4), → praise somebody/something to the skies at praise1(1)COLLOCATIONS– Meanings 1 & 2ADJECTIVES/NOUN + skyblue· The sky was blue and the sun was shining.grey British English, gray American English:· Rain was starting to fall from the grey sky.dark/black· Fireworks burst up into the dark sky.cloudy/dull/overcast (=with clouds)· Cloudy skies were forecast.bright/clear/cloudless (=without clouds)· The sun rose higher in the cloudless sky.azure literary (=bright blue)· The sun shone out of a clear azure sky.leaden/lowering literary (=with a lot of grey cloud)· The leaden skies cleared and the sun came out.a starry sky (=with a lot of stars)· We had dinner on the terrace under a beautiful starry sky.the darkening sky (=becoming darker)· Benjamin stared up at the darkening sky.the lightening sky (=becoming lighter)· A plane flew across the lightening sky.the night/evening/morning sky· The moon is the brightest object visible in the night sky.the summer/winter sky· Her eyes were as blue as the summer sky.the open sky (=a large area of sky)· They lay on the ground under the open sky.a big sky (=a sky that looks large)· Montana is still a land of big skies.verbsthe sky darkens· The sky darkened and thunder rolled in from the west.the sky clouds over (=clouds appear)· The sky was beginning to cloud over.the sky clears (=the clouds disappear)· By dawn the sky had cleared.
WORD ORIGINsky
Origin:
1200-1300 Old Norse ‘cloud’EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
- The sky turned dark just before the storm.
- The rocket shot up into the sky.
- Just being in the same sky with them made me nervous.
- She ran through the last few streets and saw with relief the familiar tall building rising against the night sky.
- The sky is full of tears tonight.
- The darker the sky, the better chance of seeing the comet, he said.
- The island has no roads, one cellular phone and a fresh water supply that comes from the sky.
- Two searchlights came on, brilliant sticks of light, prodding the sky.
- We all share the same sky and the same passion, which is to see our joint projects take to the air.
- Yolanda looks up at the sky.
Longman Language Activatorunreasonable hopes
when something you hope for or want to believe is very unlikely to happen or to be true: · I think she likes me -- but maybe it's just wishful thinking on my part!· Hopes that scientists have found a cure for baldness now seem based more on wishful thinking than reality.
something pleasant or exciting that you like to imagine happening, but which is very unlikely to happen: · I'd always wanted to travel around the world, but it seemed nothing more than a pipe-dream.· "What do you think the chances are of lasting peace in the Middle East?'' "I think it's all just a pipe-dream.''
informal an idea or plan that is pie in the sky is one that someone wishes or hopes will happen, but is unlikely to happen because it is not very practical: · Any talk of getting a reasonable response from the terrorists is just pie in the sky.
when there is no limit something that is unlimited has no fixed limit: · We pay $20 a month for unlimited Internet access.· The ticket is good for unlimited travel on the city's transportation system for 3 days.· At the time of the purchase, the extent of Alaska and its resources must have seemed unlimited.
use this to say that someone can have or do as much of something as they want: there is no limit to/on: · If we work together, there's no limit to what we can achieve.· There's no limit to the number of times you can register to win.
having no limit - used especially in literature: · Taking care of small children is a job that requires boundless energy.· They felt lost and alone on the vast, boundless sea.
something that is infinite has no limit and no end, or does not have one that you can easily see - used especially in scientific contexts: · The variations of color that a human eye can see are infinite.· infinite space· A natural language contains an infinite number of grammatical sentences.
if you say the sky's the limit , you mean that there is no upper limit on something such as the amount of money you can spend or on the success that you can have: · Pick out whatever you want - the sky's the limit.· We try to make our engineers feel that the sky's the limit when it comes to what they can design.
WORD SETSbackwater, nounbank, nounbank, verbbare, adjectivebarrier reef, nounbay, nounbayou, nounbeach, nounbeck, nounbelt, nounbillow, nounbiting, adjectivebitter, adjectiveblack ice, nounblast, nounblazing, adjectivebleach, verbblizzard, nounblow, verbblowy, adjectivebluff, nounbluster, verbblustery, adjectivebog, nounboiling, adjectiveboulder, nounbracing, adjectivebreaker, nounbreeze, nounbreezy, adjectivebrook, nounbrush, nounbrushwood, nounburn, nounbutte, nouncanyon, nouncascade, nouncataract, nouncave, nouncavern, nounchange, verbchasm, nounchoppy, adjectiveclap, nounclear, verbclement, adjectivecliff, nouncloud, nouncloudburst, nouncloudy, adjectivecoast, nouncoastal, adjectivecoastline, nouncone, nouncopse, nouncountry, nouncranny, nouncrater, nouncreation, nouncreep, verbcrisp, adjectivecrosswind, nouncumulus, nouncyclone, noundale, noundell, noundense, adjectivedew, noundewdrop, noundewfall, noundewy, adjectivedisgorge, verbdog days, noundownpour, noundownriver, adverbdownstream, adverbdownwind, adverbdrift, verbdrift, noundriftwood, noundrizzle, noundrop, verbdrop, noundrought, noundry, adjectivedry land, noundull, adjectivedune, nounduster, noundust storm, nouneast, adjectiveeddy, nounelectrical storm, nounequable, adjectiveeye, nounface, nounfail, verbfair, adjectivefall, nounfell, nounfen, nounfield, nounfierce, adjectivefiord, nounfirth, nounfjord, nounflood, verbflood, nounflood tide, nounflotsam, nounflow, nounflow, verbflower, nounflurry, nounfog, nounfogbound, adjectivefoggy, adjectivefoothill, nounfoothold, nounford, nounforeshore, nounforest, nounfoul, adjectivefreak, adjectivefreeze, nounfresh, adjectivefreshen, verbfreshwater, adjectivefrost, nounfury, noungale, noungale force, adjectivegap, noungentle, adjectivegeyser, nounglacial, adjectiveglen, noungnarled, adjectivegrassy, adjectivegreen, adjectivegreenery, nounground, nounground level, noungulley, noungully, noungust, noungust, verbgusty, adjectivehail, nounhailstone, nounhailstorm, nounhaze, nounheadwind, nounheath, nounheather, nounheat wave, nounhigh tide, nounhigh water, nounhill, nounhillock, nounhillside, nounhill station, nounhilly, adjectivehoarfrost, nounhot spring, nounhummock, nounhurricane, nounice, nouniceberg, nounice cap, nouninclement, adjectiveincline, nounIndian summer, nouninland, adjectiveinland, adverbinlet, nouninshore, adverbisland, nounisle, nounislet, nounjetsam, nounjungle, nounknoll, nounlake, nounlakeside, adjectiveledge, nounlightning, nounlip, nounloch, nounlough, nounlow tide, nounlow water, nounmarshland, nounmeadow, nounmere, nounmild, adjectivemillpond, nounmire, nounmist, nounmisty, adjectivemoan, verbmoan, nounmonsoon, nounmoonless, adjectivemoor, nounmoorland, nounMother Nature, nounmound, nounmountain, nounmountainous, adjectivemountainside, nounmountaintop, nounmouth, nounmudflat, nounmull, nounmurmur, verbmurmur, nounnarrows, nounnestle, verbnew moon, nounnook, nounnorth, adjectivenortheast, adjectivenortheaster, nounnortheasterly, adjectivenortherly, adjectivenorthwest, adjectivenorthwester, nounnorthwesterly, adjectivenotch, nounoasis, nounonshore, adjectiveooze, nounoutcrop, nounovercast, adjectiveozone, nounpack ice, nounpalisade, nounpanorama, nounparch, verbparched, adjectivepass, nounpatchy, adjectivepeak, nounpeal, nounpeasouper, nounpebble, nounpelt, verbpenumbra, nounperishing, adjectivepinewood, nounpinnacle, nounpitiless, adjectivepond, nounpour, verbprecipice, nounprospect, nounpuddle, nounquicksand, nounradiate, verbraging, adjectiverain, nounrainbow, nounrain drop, nounrainfall, nounrainstorm, nounrainwater, nounrainy, adjectiverange, nounrapids, nounrarefied, adjectiveravine, nounraw, adjectiverecede, verbreedy, adjectivereef, nounreservoir, nounridge, nounrift, nounrime, nounrise, verbrise, nounrock, nounrocky, adjectiveroll, verbrolling, adjectiverough, adjectiverural, adjectivescenery, nounscud, verbsea breeze, nounsea mist, nounset, verbshore, nounsky, nounslope, nounsludge, nounsnow, nounsnowbound, adjectivesnow-capped, adjectivesnowdrift, nounsnowfall, nounsnowflake, nounsnowstorm, nounsnowy, adjectivesouth, adjectivesoutheast, adjectivesoutheaster, nounsoutheasterly, adjectivesoutherly, adjectivesouthwest, adjectivesouthwesterly, adjectivespinney, nounspring, nounstream, nounsullen, adjectivesultry, adjectivesummer, nounsummit, nounsun, nounsundown, nounsun-drenched, adjectivesunrise, nounsunset, nounsunshine, nounswamp, nounsweep, verbswollen, adjectivetempestuous, adjectivethaw, verbthaw, nounthicket, nounthin, adjectivethunder, verbthunderbolt, nounthunderstorm, nounthundery, adjectivetide, nountreeless, adjectivetree-lined, adjectivetrough, nounturf, nountussock, nountwilight, nounvale, nounvalley, nounverdant, adjectivevisibility, nounvoid, nounwashout, nounwater, nounwatercourse, nounwaterfall, nounwaterside, nounwaterspout, nounwax, verbwest, adjectivewest, adverbwestbound, adjectivewesterly, adjectivewesternmost, adjectivewestward, adverbwet, adjectivewhirlpool, nounwhirlwind, nounwhite horses, nounwhitewater, nounwild, adjectivewill o' the wisp, nounwind, nounwindstorm, nounwindswept, adjectivewindy, adjectivewood, nounwooded, adjectivewoodland, nounwoodsy, adjectivewoody, adjectivezephyr, noun
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE ENTRY Meanings 1 & 2ADJECTIVES/NOUN + sky As the sky lightened, we were able to see where we were. Many of the tombs had been robbed and left open to the sky.
· The sky was blue and the sun was shining.
British English, gray American English:· Rain was starting to fall from the grey sky.
· Fireworks burst up into the dark sky.
(=with clouds)· Cloudy skies were forecast.
(=without clouds)· The sun rose higher in the cloudless sky.
literary (=bright blue)· The sun shone out of a clear azure sky.
literary (=with a lot of grey cloud)· The leaden skies cleared and the sun came out.
(=with a lot of stars)· We had dinner on the terrace under a beautiful starry sky.
(=becoming darker)· Benjamin stared up at the darkening sky.
(=becoming lighter)· A plane flew across the lightening sky.
· The moon is the brightest object visible in the night sky.
· Her eyes were as blue as the summer sky.
(=a large area of sky)· They lay on the ground under the open sky.
(=a sky that looks large)· Montana is still a land of big skies.
verbs· The sky darkened and thunder rolled in from the west.
(=clouds appear)· The sky was beginning to cloud over.
(=the clouds disappear)· By dawn the sky had cleared.
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES As the sky lightened, we were able to see where we were.· We looked up at the stars in the night sky.
Many of the tombs had been robbed and left open to the sky. (=praise someone or something very much)
· They walked until the sun was low in the sky.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSADJECTIVE· The Moon has no atmosphere, and photographs taken on the Moon's surface show a black sky.· Over a thousand tons of red hot metal shrapnel from the exploded ship rained dawn with the rocks from a black sky.· It is a beautiful night, a full moon and a few bright stars against the black sky over the Heath.· They were set not on black sky, however, but on a brilliantly painted mural which covered the dome.· Just boring brown rock and shadows black as the sky.· She saw the lights of the mill and the sulfuric clouds making yellow animal shapes against the black sky.· Over her shoulder the stars twinkled in the black sky.· He was examining the stars: hot white stars in a black sky.
· Being surprised by opinion polls is like being taken aback by blue skies.· He was walking home in a thick fog, wondering when the crisp, blue skies of autumn might appear.· For the first time that holiday, the sun shone in an unbroken blue sky.· Brilliant blue skies and unseasonably balmy weather prevailed.· A bad weather front feeling its way over from the west like a nasty white octopus in the blue summer sky.· The downside is that if you channel your thought too much, you might never see the blue sky.· Clear blue skies mean you bake all day and freeze all night.· He made the most of the clear patches of brilliant blue sky fleetingly appearing through the white storm clouds.
· A slender new crescent moon lay on its back high in the clear night sky.· The days were hot, filled with relentless sunshine and clear skies.· The day was idyllic, with clear blue skies and temperatures up in the shirt-sleeves.· At a great distance, the ghostly frost of a snow peak seemed suspended from the clear sky.· She looked up at the clear sky.· The mountains were etched against the clear, brilliant sky.· The clarity of light throws everything into sharp relief against a backdrop of clear blue sky.· Desert areas on Earth often have wide diurnal temperature ranges due to nighttime radiative cooling through very clear skies.
· The Moon in a cloudless blue sky is visible directly above the spacecraft.· And here at the equator, we noted, it was 85 degrees, with cloudless sky and tropical breezes.· Today she didn't even glance at the cloudless blue sky.· A blistering July sun, a cloudless blue sky and the wine-dark seas without even a ripple to show for themselves.· These days, the earth bakes beneath the cloudless midday sky, and the vegetation on the mountainsides turns a mournful brown.· By day you can see for miles, and at night the moon shines brightly out of cloudless skies.· The morning of December 31, 1862, came on with a cloudless sky and a ringing, frosty air.
· Britain's cloudy skies are only partly to blame for this poor performance.· He looked around, but the streets were empty, cloudy skies indifferent.· As she did so, the windscreen reflected the cloudy sky back at her as a white sheet.
· He stood against them, watching the dark western sky and the ash-blue cumulus now edged with brilliant white.· There was a clear, dark sky.· But he saw nothing, nothing but dark sky: The oxygen mask was filled with sweat.· The darker the sky, the better chance of seeing the comet, he said.· The stirring of their twigs against the dark, travelling sky Is the oracle of the earth.· Three minutes before the dark, ominous skies unleashed a fury of rain and thunder.· Floating through a dark blue sky.· Black fragments of tombs rose up on either side of the road, silhouetted against the still not quite dark sky.
· We saw dead volcanic lakes, grey under the grey sky.· Beyond the police cars and their orange barrier, smoke veined with flames smudged the grey sky.· Pouring rain and flat grey sky outside.· The rain stops and the grey skies begin to clear.· There was no definite horizon line and the castle seemed to be hanging in the grey sky like a mirage.· A monochrome landscape, grey under a low grey sky, its horizons blurred by a grey haze.· The grey and stormy skies made them if anything greener.· The countryside looked like some vision of hell; white, silent fields and black trees against a grey sky.
· As the sun rose higher in the sky the shadow shortened until noon, when it disappeared at the sixth hour mark.· Standing between the high gray sky and the pocket-sized pool, I feel omnipotent.· The sun was high in the sky now and he could feel the heat of it on his head and shoulders.· Those arriving high in the sky descend by banking sharply on out-stretched wings, then spiral down.· Take me with you, wind, high over the sky.· The lights were bright and yellow-white, and seemed very high in the sky.· The moon is also higher in the sky during the winter months.· The Galaxy was high in the sky and its misty lens shape stretched lazily from horizon to horizon.
· The sun was low in the sky as we worked our way carefully down the descent slopes and gullies.· Rolling on to her back, she stared unhappily at too many clouds that raced each other across the low sky.· The sun is low in the sky and the mood of the afternoon is sleepy and unfixed.· It was a cold winter's day with the sun still low in the sky.· A monochrome landscape, grey under a low grey sky, its horizons blurred by a grey haze.· It hung lower in the sky, nearer, more golden, since now she loved and was loved.· It was early afternoon but the sun was already low in the sky, the air as chilly as Dowd's welcome.· The sun was now very low in the sky, and the urgency of the situation was clear.
· The photographer's glance alights on small details of foliage or suddenly sweeps upwards to the open sky.· But Janir seemed content, even fascinated, to be under the open sky.· Now Jaq understood the function of that helmet he had seen the Governor wearing out at the spaceport under the open sky.· Part of it was open to the sky, so that a wedge of scalding light fell into the gloom.· The windows were open and the sky was dark.· The chancel is open to the sky.· Now I can see rooftops outside the windows as well as open sky.· They bend their heads right back until their faces are entirely open to the sky.
NOUN· There are a few planets in the evening sky, though.· A little bit of thunder rolled through the evening sky, far off.· She thought of evening skies, the silhouettes of lonely birds against the sun, and tired land.· The soft light of dusk was thinning, leaving trees and buildings blackened agalnst the evening sky.· Frith lies in the evening sky.· Not for its elegance did I come to love the evening sky, hellish red with the gathering souls.· It was not quite dark yet and the evening sky on the high tops was still aglow with delicate pastel shades.· A magnificent privet bird stood silhouetted against the evening sky.
· Above him vast silver dirigibles moved in the morning sky, great black crates strung beneath them.· As the sun rose higher into the morning sky, circuits went inside her greymass, flaring up and dwindling to ash.· Under the clear summer morning sky the traffic thickens.· The ashen flat morning sky reflects pewter.· He dropped the remnant carcase of his prey and pushed up into the fresh morning sky.· A dark shape stood silhouetted against the bright morning sky.· The morning sky was blue as yet but storm clouds were gathering and the wind seemed on the change.
· A slender new crescent moon lay on its back high in the clear night sky.· But more telescopes are needed to provide continuous coverage of the night sky at all latitudes.· A sudden boom followed in its wake, a new parachute flare splitting the night sky - a red target flare.· For a time Kathy stood gazing at the night sky.· Above the village, almost invisible against the velvet shroud of the night sky, something huge silently blotted out the stars.· Then he slumps forward, face down, turned away from the last bit of dim illumination offered by the night sky.· The plane slipped easily down out of the night sky on to the Doha runway.· Such a perfect green disk under such a perfect night sky.
· Her eyes, no longer hidden behind glasses, looked large and blue as a summer sky.· I stood on that porch listening to the silence, watching the white clouds in the dark blue summer sky.· Let the summer skies hold off, for the moment.· A bad weather front feeling its way over from the west like a nasty white octopus in the blue summer sky.· You have eyes as hot and sensuous as a blue summer sky.· The black clouds had parted to show between them shreds of summer sky turned sickly green.
VERB· Dragons so numerous that their wings darkened the sky descended on the Chaos Host.· The Air Force intends the F-22 stealth fighter to be the grimmest perdition to darken the skies since mythological times.· A cloud passes over the sun, darkens the sky, and we are both reflected in the green.· On screen, a glowing rocket climbs into the darkened sky.· The ash-fall was thick enough to darken the sky, and about half a centimetre accumulated on the ground.· It ignores her, and looks philosophically out the window at the darkening sky.· Straight away a great flock of wild crows came flying towards her, enough to darken the sky.· The virtual disappearance of the moon glow then lights up the stars in the darkened sky.
· No more snow had fallen, the sky was still overcast but the air was crisp and a little warmer.· But small rocks fall from the sky much more frequently.· As for the money - it will fall from the sky.· A cold rain was beginning to fall, the sky to the east was very dark.· Money was falling from the sky quicker than Fielding could catch it.· About a quarter mile offshore, birds are falling from the sky.· It was as if she had fallen out of a generous sky.· We prayed for rain at supper every evening, and for three months not a single drop fell from the sky.
· The glow fills the sky from the east until the edge of the sun lifts up above the edge of the ocean.· It underwent a major restoration -- extensive filling in of painted sky and backdrop -- about 14 years ago.· The incandescent circle overhead expanded until it filled the entire sky.· The second lobe looms overhead until it fills most of the sky.· When I heard the clatter of horse's hooves, it seemed an enormous, ringing sound, filling the empty sky.· Even as it was, the glare of the Earth, filling half the sky, drowned all but the brighter stars.· Within an hour the whole line was pouring out shells, filling the night sky with a dense traffic of metal.
· This burning, lighting up the sky, would be seen from afar.· The setting sun has lit up the western sky.· The taxi was destroyed in a huge fireball which lit up the night sky and showered red-hot debris for 150 yards.· In the front was a guardian of brazen hue and dragon form lighting the skies with his radiance.· An enemy flare was lighting up the sky at the other end of the village, probably over No. 6 Commando positions.· After rolling on the sand in excruciating pain until stars lit up the sky, he relieved himself for a good half-hour.
· I didn't look up at the sky.· What a day! Look at that sky!· She looks up at the sky and says thank you.· Then he exhaled and looked up at the sky and watched his breath leave him.· He looked up at the sky.· I looked up at the sky and the terror returned, this time more strongly.· Ace found herself looking up at the sky.· Yolanda looks up at the sky.
· As the sun rose higher in the sky the shadow shortened until noon, when it disappeared at the sixth hour mark.· Yet new buildings were rising toward the sky all over town; steam shovels and giant cranes worked double-time.· He looked across the sea: a faint glimmer of pale light was rising in the midnight-blue sky.· The red sun warmed him as it rose in the sky, and that brought him pleasure.· She ran through the last few streets and saw with relief the familiar tall building rising against the night sky.· Same mammoth grandstands rising into the sky.· The moon rose high in the sky and shone unfalteringly into the woods, a silver goddess that I felt like worshipping.· He put these thoughts behind him, as the golden crescent of Saturn rose in the sky ahead.
· Up, up, up, staring into the sky, Whitney rising behind her.· I sank down in the chintz-covered chair and stared out at the sky through the window opposite me.· He sat up and stared at the sky in wonder.· Aaron sat on the roof and stared at the sky.· Peach lay back and stared at the sky.· I love you! she yelled silently, staring up at the skies.· He wanted to stare at a free sky.· He stared up into the sky, his vision pulsing.
· He stood against them, watching the dark western sky and the ash-blue cumulus now edged with brilliant white.· When I finished up at Mrs James's, I ran down the street and watched the sky.· There were a lot of humans on it, and most of them were watching the skies.· He watched the sky and pretended he was a winner.· As a kid in Tehran, I spent hours watching the night skies and became fascinated by the vertical dimension.· We just went on sitting there, blown by the gusty wind and watching the sky where the plane had disappeared.· The first is to watch the skies!· As she watched the skies, half fascinated, half terrified, the planes shimmered and were gone.
PHRASES FROM THE ENTRYPHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES► blow something sky-high► blow something sky-high
1[singular, uncountable] the space above the Earth where clouds and the Sun and stars appear: - a land of blue skies and warm sunshine
- Pick out whatever you want - the sky's the limit.
- We try to make our engineers feel that the sky's the limit when it comes to what they can design.
- But towards morning heavy clouds spread across.
- Dark heavy clouds were crawling across the sky, blotting out the stars.
- Looking northwards towards the end of the dale, she frowned to see the accumulation of heavy clouds above the moors.
- The heavy clouds that had gathered about the summit of Mont Blanc boiled from within.
- Under dark, heavy clouds, I returned to the den on the river.
- While they slept, heavy clouds swirled over the valley in massed ranks and the snow began to fall.
- Any talk of getting a reasonable response from the terrorists is just pie in the sky.
- Building a baseball field downtown is just pie in the sky right now.
- But that's all pie in the sky.
- Do not be deceived into throwing away a decent offer in pursuit of pie in the sky.
- Eventual payment was promised at the rate of 5Op per deal, but this proved pie in the sky.
- I was promised the pie in the sky by and by.
- So much pie in the sky, she remembered thinking later.
- What used to be pie in the sky when you die has, quite rightly, become pie now, please.
The sky grew dark, and a cold rain began to fall. A shooting star sped across the night sky.in the sky There wasn’t a cloud in the sky.2skies [plural] a word meaning ‘sky’, used especially when describing the weather or what the sky looks like in a place: a land of blue skies and warm sunshine The skies were overcast, and it was chilly and damp.3the sky’s the limit spoken used to say that there is no limit to what someone can achieve, spend, win etc: Francis believes the sky’s the limit for the young goalkeeper. → pie in the sky at pie(4), → praise somebody/something to the skies at praise1(1)COLLOCATIONS– Meanings 1 & 2ADJECTIVES/NOUN + skyblue· The sky was blue and the sun was shining.grey British English, gray American English:· Rain was starting to fall from the grey sky.dark/black· Fireworks burst up into the dark sky.cloudy/dull/overcast (=with clouds)· Cloudy skies were forecast.bright/clear/cloudless (=without clouds)· The sun rose higher in the cloudless sky.azure literary (=bright blue)· The sun shone out of a clear azure sky.leaden/lowering literary (=with a lot of grey cloud)· The leaden skies cleared and the sun came out.a starry sky (=with a lot of stars)· We had dinner on the terrace under a beautiful starry sky.the darkening sky (=becoming darker)· Benjamin stared up at the darkening sky.the lightening sky (=becoming lighter)· A plane flew across the lightening sky.the night/evening/morning sky· The moon is the brightest object visible in the night sky.the summer/winter sky· Her eyes were as blue as the summer sky.the open sky (=a large area of sky)· They lay on the ground under the open sky.a big sky (=a sky that looks large)· Montana is still a land of big skies.verbsthe sky darkens· The sky darkened and thunder rolled in from the west.the sky clouds over (=clouds appear)· The sky was beginning to cloud over.the sky clears (=the clouds disappear)· By dawn the sky had cleared.