Thesummer solstice is the day of the year with the most hours of daylight, and thewinter solstice is the day of the year with the fewest hours of daylight.
solstice in British English
(ˈsɒlstɪs)
noun
1.
either the shortest day of the year (winter solstice) or the longest day of the year (summer solstice)
2.
either of the two points on the ecliptic at which the sun is overhead at the tropic of Cancer or Capricorn at the summer and winter solstices
Derived forms
solstitial (sɒlˈstɪʃəl)
adjective
solstitially (solˈstitially)
adverb
Word origin
C13: via Old French from Latin sōlstitium, literally: the (apparent) standing still of the sun, from sōl sun + sistere to stand still
solstice in American English
(ˈsɑlstɪs; ˈsoʊlstɪs)
noun
1.
the moment or date when the sun in its apparent annual movement along the ecliptic reaches its maximum distance north or south of the celestial equator: in the Northern Hemisphere, the day of the summer solstice (about June 21, marking the beginning of summer) is the time of the sun's maximum elevation and, thus, has the longest period of sunlight; the day of the winter solstice (about Dec. 21, marking the beginning of winter) is the time of the sun's minimum elevation and, thus, has the shortest period of sunlight
2.
either of the two points on the celestial sphere where the sun's path reaches its maximum distance north or south of the celestial equator
Derived forms
solstitial (solˈstitial)
adjective
Word origin
ME < MFr < L solstitium < sol, the sun (see Sol1) + sistere, caus. of stare, to stand
Examples of 'solstice' in a sentence
solstice
My best moment was waking up on the day of the summer solstice last year.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
Surely the winter solstice must also be the coldest day of the year?
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
The summer solstice brings the sun into your sign and the project that means the most to you gets going.
The Sun (2008)
It makes us realise summer is now a memory and that the year is in inexorable decline towards the winter solstice.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
Today is the winter solstice, the day with the shortest length of daylight in the year.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
The ring is about 30 feet in diameter and aligned to the winter solstice sunset.
Brennan, J. H. A Guide to Megalithic Ireland (1992)
Technically, new year should be the day after the winter solstice.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
Today is the shortest day of the year, the winter solstice.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
As the sun arrives in your birth sign for the summer solstice, your life feels brighter.
The Sun (2011)
Right now the Earth is nearer the sun at the northern winter solstice than it is at the southern winter solstice.
Radford, Tim & Leggett, Jeremy The Crisis of Life on Earth - our legacy from the second millenium (1990)
Across the cold lands of the north, the winter solstice has been the stuff of fearful legend since stories began.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
What is the summer solstice?
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
Forget the summer solstice: the orange glow in the night sky will be that of the circle of street lamps on the roundabout.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
THOUSANDS of pagans heading to Stonehenge for the summer solstice face a grey weekend.
The Sun (2015)
With the summer solstice approaching, here is my pick of the best stone circles in Britain.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
One section of the ceremony will pay tribute to British festivals including Glastonbury and the summer solstice.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
WITH less than a week to go until the summer solstice, the strength of the sun is near its annual peak.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
And it was also the winter solstice, the first time this has coincided with a total lunar eclipse for 372 years.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
Might there be a connection, then, between the feasts of the winter solstice and the desire to protect against the infections it brings?
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
The clouds will gradually appear across the UK, usually reaching a peak around three weeks after the summer solstice.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
In other languages
solstice
British English: solstice NOUN
The summer solstice is the day of the year with the most hours of daylight, and the winter solstice is the day of the year with the fewest hours of daylight.