Summer noun [ From Sum , v. ] One who sums; one who casts up an account.

Summer noun [ French sommier a rafter, the same word as sommier a beast of burden. See Sumpter .] (Architecture) A large stone or beam placed horizontally on columns, piers, posts, or the like, serving for various uses. Specifically: (a) The lintel of a door or window. (b) The commencement of a cross vault. (c) A central floor timber, as a girder, or a piece reaching from a wall to a girder. Called also summertree .

Summer noun [ Middle English sumer , somer , Anglo-Saxon sumor , sumer ; akin to OFries. sumur , Dutch zomer , Old Saxon sumar , German sommer , Old High German & Icelandic sumar , Danish sommer , Swedish sommar , W. haf , Zend hama , Sanskrit samā year. √292.] The season of the year in which the sun shines most directly upon any region; the warmest period of the year.

» North of the equator summer is popularly taken to include the months of June, July, and August. Astronomically it may be considered, in the northern hemisphere, to begin with the summer solstice, about June 21st, and to end with the autumnal equinox, about September 22d.

Indian summer , in North America, a period of warm weather late in autumn, usually characterized by a clear sky, and by a hazy or smoky appearance of the atmosphere, especially near the horizon. The name is derived probably from the custom of the Indians of using this time in preparation for winter by laying in stores of food. -- Saint Martin's summer . See under Saint . -- Summer bird (Zoology) , the wryneck. [ Prov. Eng.] -- Summer colt , the undulating state of the air near the surface of the ground when heated. [ Eng.] -- Summer complaint (Medicine) , a popular term for any diarrheal disorder occurring in summer, especially when produced by heat and indigestion. -- Summer coot (Zoology) , the American gallinule. [ Local, U.S.] -- Summer cypress (Botany) , an annual plant ( Kochia Scoparia ) of the Goosefoot family. It has narrow, ciliate, crowded leaves, and is sometimes seen in gardens. -- Summer duck . (Zoology) (a) The wood duck. (b) The garganey, or summer teal. See Illust. of Wood duck , under Wood . -- Summer fallow , land uncropped and plowed, etc., during the summer, in order to pulverize the soil and kill the weeds. -- Summer rash (Medicine) , prickly heat. See under Prickly . -- Summer sheldrake (Zoology) , the hooded merganser. [ Local, U.S.] -- Summer snipe . (Zoology) (a) The dunlin. (b) The common European sandpiper. (c) The green sandpiper. -- Summer tanager (Zoology) , a singing bird ( Piranga rubra ) native of the Middle and Southern United States. The male is deep red, the female is yellowish olive above and yellow beneath. Called also summer redbird . -- Summer teal (Zoology) , the blue-winged teal. [ Local, U.S.] -- Summer wheat , wheat that is sown in the spring, and matures during the summer following. See Spring wheat . -- Summer yellowbird . (Zoology) See Yellowbird .

Summer intransitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Summered ; present participle & verbal noun Summering .] To pass the summer; to spend the warm season; as, to summer in Switzerland.

The fowls shall summer upon them.

Isa. xviii. 6.

Summer transitive verb To keep or carry through the summer; to feed during the summer; as, to summer stock.

Summer-fallow transitive verb To plow and work in summer, in order to prepare for wheat or other crop; to plow and let lie fallow.

Summerhouse noun ; plural Summerhouses A rustic house or apartment in a garden or park, to be used as a pleasure resort in summer. Shak.

Summerliness noun The quality or state of being like summer. [ R.] Fuller.

Summersault, Summerset noun See Somersault , Somerset .

Summerstir transitive verb To summer- fallow.

Summertide noun Summer time.

Summertree noun [ Summer a beam + tree .] (Architecture) A summer. See 2d Summer .

Summery adjective Of or pertaining to summer; like summer; as, a summery day.

Summist noun One who sums up; one who forms an abridgment or summary. Sir E. Dering.

Summit noun [ French sommet , dim. of Old French som , sum , top, from Latin summum , from summus highest. See Sum , noun ]
1. The top; the highest point.

Fixed on the summit of the highest mount.

Shak.

2. The highest degree; the utmost elevation; the acme; as, the summit of human fame.

3. (Zoology) The most elevated part of a bivalve shell, or the part in which the hinge is situated.

Summit level , the highest level of a canal, a railroad, or the like, in surmounting an ascent.

Summitless adjective Having no summit.

Summity noun [ Latin summitas , from summus highest: confer French sommité . See Sum , noun ]
1. The height or top of anything. [ Obsolete] Swift.

2. The utmost degree; perfection. [ Obsolete] Hallywell.

Summon transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Summoned ; present participle & verbal noun Summoning .] [ Middle English somonen , Old French sumundre , semondre , French semondre , from (assumed) Late Latin summonĕre , for Latin summonēre to give a hint; sub under + monere to admonish, to warn. See Monition , and confer Submonish .]
1. To call, bid, or cite; to notify to come to appear; -- often with up .

Stiffen the sinews, summon up the blood.

Shak.

Trumpets summon him to war.

Dryden.

2. To give notice to, or command to appear, as in court; to cite by authority; as, to summon witnesses.

3. (Mil.) To call upon to surrender, as a fort.

Syn. -- To call; cite; notify; convene; convoke; excite; invite; bid. See Call .

Summoner noun [ Middle English somner , sompnour , Old French semoneor , French semonneur . See Summon , transitive verb ] One who summons; one who cites by authority; specifically, a petty officer formerly employed to summon persons to appear in court; an apparitor.

Summons noun ; plural Summonses . [ Middle English somouns , Old French sumunse , semonse , semonce , French semonce , semondre to summon, Old French past participle semons . See Summon , v. ]
1. The act of summoning; a call by authority, or by the command of a superior, to appear at a place named, or to attend to some duty.

Special summonses by the king.

Hallam.

This summons . . . unfit either to dispute or disobey.

Bp. Fell.

He sent to summon the seditious, and to offer pardon; but neither summons nor pardon was regarded.

Sir J. Hayward.

2. (Law) A warning or citation to appear in court; a written notification signed by the proper officer, to be served on a person, warning him to appear in court at a day specified, to answer to the plaintiff, testify as a witness, or the like.

3. (Mil.) A demand to surrender.

Summons transitive verb To summon. [ R. or Colloq.] Swift.

Summum bonum [ Latin ] (Philos.) The supreme or highest good, -- referring to the object of human life.

Sumner noun A summoner. [ Obsolete] Beau. & Fl.

Sumoom noun See Simoom .

Sump noun [ Confer German sumpf a sump in a mine, a swamp, akin to LG. sump , Dutch somp a swamp, Dan. & Swedish sump , and perhaps to English swamp .]
1. (Metal.) A round pit of stone, lined with clay, for receiving the metal on its first fusion. Ray.

2. The cistern or reservoir made at the lowest point of a mine, from which is pumped the water which accumulates there.

3. A pond of water for salt works. Knight.

4. A puddle or dirty pool. [ Prov. Eng.]

Sump fuse , a fuse used in blasting under water. -- Sump men (Mining) , the men who sink the sump in a mine.

Sumph noun A dunce; a blockhead. [ Scot.]

Sumpitan noun A kind of blowgun for discharging arrows, -- used by the savages of Borneo and adjacent islands.

Sumpter noun [ Old French sommetier the driver of a pack horse; akin to Old French & French sommier a pack horse, Latin sagmarius , from sagma a pack saddle, in Late Latin , a load, Greek ... a pack saddle, from ... to pack, load; confer Sanskrit saj , sañj , to hang on. Confer Seam a weight, Summer a beam.]
1. The driver of a pack horse. [ Obsolete] Skeat.

2. A pack; a burden. [ Obsolete] Beau. & Fl.

3. An animal, especially a horse, that carries packs or burdens; a baggage horse. Holinshed.

Sumpter adjective Carrying pack or burdens on the back; as, a sumpter horse; a sumpter mule. Bacon.

Sumption noun [ Latin sumptio , from sumere , sumptum , to take.]
1. A taking. [ Obsolete] Jer. Taylor.

2. (Logic) The major premise of a syllogism.

Sumptuary adjective [ Latin sumptuarius , from sumptus expense, cost, from sumere , sumptum , to take, use, spend; sub under + emere to take, buy: confer French somptuaire . See Redeem .] Relating to expense; regulating expense or expenditure. Bacon.

Sumptuary laws or regulations , laws intended to restrain or limit the expenditure of citizens in apparel, food, furniture, etc.; laws which regulate the prices of commodities and the wages of labor; laws which forbid or restrict the use of certain articles, as of luxurious apparel.

Sumptuosity noun [ Latin sumptuositas : confer French somptuosité .] Expensiveness; costliness; sumptuousness. [ R.] Sir W. Raleigh.

Sumptuous adjective [ Latin sumptuosus , from sumptus expanse, cost: confer French somptueux . See Sumptuary .] Involving large outlay or expense; costly; expensive; hence, luxurious; splendid; magnificient; as, a sumptuous house or table; sumptuous apparel.

We are too magnificient and sumptuous in our tables and attendance.

Atterbury.

She spoke, and turned her sumptuous head, with eyes
Of shining expectation fixed on mine.

Tennyson.

-- Sump"tu*ous*ly , adverb -- Sump"tu*ous*ness , noun

Sun noun (Botany) See Sunn .

Sun noun [ Middle English sunne , sonne , Anglo-Saxon sunne ; akin to OFries. sunne , Dutch zon , Old Saxon & Old High German sunna , German sonne , Icelandic sunna , Goth. sunna ; perhaps from same root as Latin sol . √297. Confer Solar , South .]
1. The luminous orb, the light of which constitutes day, and its absence night; the central body round which the earth and planets revolve, by which they are held in their orbits, and from which they receive light and heat. Its mean distance from the earth is about 92,500,000 miles, and its diameter about 860,000.

» Its mean apparent diameter as seen from the earth is 32′ 4″, and it revolves on its own axis once in 25⅓ days. Its mean density is about one fourth of that of the earth, or 1.41, that of water being unity. Its luminous surface is called the photosphere , above which is an envelope consisting partly of hydrogen, called the chromosphere , which can be seen only through the spectroscope, or at the time of a total solar eclipse. Above the chromosphere, and sometimes extending out millions of miles, are luminous rays or streams of light which are visible only at the time of a total eclipse, forming the solar corona .

2. Any heavenly body which forms the center of a system of orbs.

3. The direct light or warmth of the sun; sunshine.

Lambs that did frisk in the sun .

Shak.

4. That which resembles the sun, as in splendor or importance; any source of light, warmth, or animation.

For the Lord God is a sun and shield.

Ps. lxxiv. 11.

I will never consent to put out the sun of sovereignity to posterity.

Eikon Basilike.

Sun and planet wheels (Machinery) , an ingenious contrivance for converting reciprocating motion, as that of the working beam of a steam engine, into rotatory motion. It consists of a toothed wheel (called the sun wheel ), firmly secured to the shaft it is desired to drive, and another wheel (called the planet wheel ) secured to the end of a connecting rod. By the motion of the connecting rod, the planet wheel is made to circulate round the central wheel on the shaft, communicating to this latter a velocity of revolution the double of its own. G. Francis. -- Sun angel (Zoology) , a South American humming bird of the genus Heliangelos , noted for its beautiful colors and the brilliant luster of the feathers of its throat. -- Sun animalcute . (Zoology) See Heliozoa . -- Sun bath (Medicine) , exposure of a patient to the sun's rays; insolation. -- Sun bear (Zoology) , a species of bear ( Helarctos Malayanus ) native of Southern Asia and Borneo. It has a small head and short neck, and fine short glossy fur, mostly black, but brownish on the nose. It is easily tamed. Called also bruang , and Malayan bear . -- Sun beetle (Zoology) , any small lustrous beetle of the genus Amara . -- Sun bittern (Zoology) , a singular South American bird ( Eurypyga helias ), in some respects related both to the rails and herons. It is beautifully variegated with white, brown, and black. Called also sunbird , and tiger bittern . -- Sun fever (Medicine) , the condition of fever produced by sun stroke. -- Sun gem (Zoology) , a Brazilian humming bird ( Heliactin cornutus ). Its head is ornamented by two tufts of bright colored feathers, fiery crimson at the base and greenish yellow at the tip. Called also Horned hummer . -- Sun grebe (Zoology) , the finfoot. -- Sun picture , a picture taken by the agency of the sun's rays; a photograph. -- Sun spots (Astron.) , dark spots that appear on the sun's disk, consisting commonly of a black central portion with a surrounding border of lighter shade, and usually seen only by the telescope, but sometimes by the naked eye. They are very changeable in their figure and dimensions, and vary in size from mere apparent points to spaces of 50,000 miles in diameter. The term sun spots is often used to include bright spaces (called faculæ ) as well as dark spaces (called maculæ ). Called also solar spots . See Illustration in Appendix. -- Sun star (Zoology) , any one of several species of starfishes belonging to Solaster , Crossaster , and allied genera, having numerous rays. -- Sun trout (Zoology) , the squeteague. -- Sun wheel . (Machinery) See Sun and planet wheels , above. -- Under the sun , in the world; on earth. "There is no new thing under the sun ." Eccl. i. 9.

» Sun is often used in the formation of compound adjectives of obvious meaning; as, sun -bright, sun - dried, sun -gilt, sun like, sun -lit, sun - scorched, and the like.

Sun transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Sunned ; present participle & verbal noun Sunning .] To expose to the sun's rays; to warm or dry in the sun; as, to sun cloth; to sun grain.

Then to sun thyself in open air.

Dryden.

Sun star (Zoology) See Sun star , under Sun .

Sun-burner noun A circle or cluster of gas-burners for lighting and ventilating public buildings.

Sunbeam noun [ Anglo-Saxon sunnebeam .] A beam or ray of the sun. "Evening sunbeams ." Keble.

Thither came Uriel, gliding through the even
On a sunbeam .

Milton.

Sunbird noun (Zoology) (a) Any one of numerous species of small brilliantly colored birds of the family Nectariniidæ , native of Africa, Southern Asia, the East Indies, and Australia. In external appearance and habits they somewhat resemble humming birds, but they are true singing birds (Oscines). (b) The sun bittern.

Sunblink noun A glimpse or flash of the sun. [ Scot.] Sir W. Scott.

Sunbonnet noun A bonnet, generally made of some thin or light fabric, projecting beyond the face, and commonly having a cape, -- worn by women as a protection against the sun.

Sunbow noun A rainbow; an iris. Byron.

Sunburn transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Sunburned or Sunburnt ; present participle & verbal noun Sunburning .] To burn or discolor by the sun; to tan.

Sunburnt and swarthy though she be.

Dryden.

Sunburn noun The burning or discoloration produced on the skin by the heat of the sun; tan.

Sunburning noun Sunburn; tan. Boyle.

Sunburst noun A burst of sunlight.

Suncup noun A yellow flowered evening primrose ( Taraxia, syn. Œnothera, ovata ) native of California.

Sundart noun Sunbeam. [ R.] Mrs. Hemans.

Sunday noun [ Anglo-Saxon sunnandæg ; sunne , gen. sunnan , the sun + dæg day; akin to Dutch zondag , German sonntag ; -- so called because this day was anciently dedicated to the sun , or to its worship. See Sun , and Day .] The first day of the week, -- consecrated among Christians to rest from secular employments, and to religious worship; the Christian Sabbath; the Lord's Day.

Advent Sunday , Low Sunday , Passion Sunday , etc. See under Advent , Low , etc.

Syn. -- See Sabbath .

Sunday adjective Belonging to the Christian Sabbath.

Sunday letter . See Dominical letter , under Dominical . -- Sunday school . See under School .