Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
Definition: Sunglasses |
SunglassesNoun1. Spectacles that are darkened or polarized to protect the eyes from the glare of the sun; "he was wearing a pair of mirrored shades". Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
Sunglasses are a kind of spectacles which feature lenses that are coloured or darkened to screen out strong light from the eyes.Many people find direct sunlight too bright to be comfortable, especially when reading from paper on which the sun directly shines. Also, with the rise of the atmosphere's damaged ozone layer, it has been recommended to the public to wear these kind of glasses on sunny days to protect the eyes from ultraviolet radiation. They have also been associated with film actors since the lighting involved in production is typically strong and uncomfortable to the naked eye.
Corrective lenses can be darkened to serve the same purpose, or secondary clip-on dark lenses can be placed in front of the regular lenses.
People with severe visual impairment often wear sunglasses so they do not make others uncomfortable with the fact that they cannot make eye contact with them.
James Ayscough began experimenting with tinted lenses in spectacles in the mid-18th century. These were not "sunglasses" as such; Ayscough believed blue- or green-tinted glass could correct for specific vision impairments. Protection from the sun's rays was not a concern of his.
Sunglasses as such were introduced by Sam Foster in 1929. Foster found a ready market in Atlantic City, New Jersey, where he began selling Foster Grants from a Woolworth on the Boardwalk.
Sunglasses would not become polarized, however, until 1936, when Edwin H. Land began experimenting with making lenses with his patented Polaroid filter.
People predominantly seen wearing sunglasses
Some celebrities are predominantly seen in public wearing sunglasses. These people include:
The reasons for this are varied and the behavior is typically the source of much speculation in the yellow press.
- Bono
- Ray Charles
- Tom Clancy
- Magenta De Vine
- Andrew Eldritch (of The Sisters of Mercy)
- Jose Feliciano
- Billy Gibbons (of ZZ Top)
- Heino (German singer)
- Dusty Hill (also of ZZ Top)
- Jackie Kennedy
- Karl Lagerfeld
- Jeff Lynne (of Electric Light Orchestra)
- Yoko Ono
- Roy Orbison
- Richard Petty
- Stevie Wonder
Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Sunglasses."
Synonyms: SunglassesSynonyms: dark glasses (n), shades (n). (additional references) |
Crosswords: Sunglasses |
| English words defined with "sunglasses": Polaroid. (references) |
| Specialty definitions using "sunglasses": ASSEMBLER, CLIP-ON SUNGLASSES ♦ INSPECTOR, CLIP-ON SUNGLASSES ♦ troglodyte mode. (references) |
| Domain | Usage | |
Screenplays | It's 106 miles to Chicago, we've got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it's dark and we're wearing sunglasses. (The Blues Brothers; writing credit: Dan Aykroyd and John Landis.) These sunglasses, they're really nice (Midnight Run ; writing credit: George Gallo) A tattoo isn't something you put on or take off just like sunglasses. It's a very important decision (Tattoo; writing credit: Joyce Buñuel) Hyde, if this isn't about free ice cream, naked volleyball or a dog wearing a hat and sunglasses, I'd rather not know (That '70s Show; writing credit: Stacia Raymond) | |
Lyrics | Sunglasses on, baby (The Boys of Summer; performing artist: Don Henley) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | ||
| Domain | Title |
References | |
Books | |
Consumer Goods | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| Thumbnail | Description & Credit | Thumbnail | Description & Credit |
 | Shown is an older white woman, wearing sunglasses and a hat, power walking outside. Credit: Unknown photographer/artist. |  | UV Sunglasses. Credit: NASA. |
 | Stokely Carmichael (left) in sunglasses and a striped shirt, speaking with a group of young African Americans during a Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee fund-raising rally in Philadelphia. Credit: Library of Congress. | ||
Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits. | |||
 |
| "Sunglasses" by Henri Snijders Commentary: "Two sunglasses in close-up on a table together with a book." |
Source: photographs selected by the editor, with permission from the photographers. |
| Subject | Topic | Quote |
Health | In areas where sunlight is strong, wearing protective eyeglasses, sunglasses, and/or hats with brims are suggested. (references) | |
You can leave the office once the treatment is done, but you will need someone to drive you home. Because your pupils will stay dilated for a few hours, you also should bring a pair of sunglasses. (references) | ||
You may leave the office once the treatment is done, but you will need someone to drive you home. Because your pupils will remain dilated for a few hours, you also should bring a pair of sunglasses. (references) | ||
Economic History | Tunisia | IT IS LARGELY A CONCERN IN THE AREAS OF CLOTHING, SUNGLASSES, SHOES, CASSETTES, VIDEOS AND COMPUTER SOFTWARE. (references) |
Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits. | ||
| "Sunglasses" is generally used as a noun (plural) -- approximately 96.65% of the time. "Sunglasses" is used about 179 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted) |
| Parts of Speech | Percent | Usage per 100 Million Words | Rank in English |
| Noun (plural) | 96.65% | 173 | 23,656 |
| Lexical Verb (-s form) | 2.79% | 5 | 157,705 |
| Noun (proper) | 0.56% | 1 | 339,140 |
| Total | 100.00% | 179 | N/A |
Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.
Expressions using "sunglasses": pair of sunglasses ♦ polaroid sunglasses. Additional references. | |
| Hypenated Usage | |
Ending with "sunglasses": anti-sunglasses. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com. |
| Expression | Frequency per Day |
longs sunglasses.com | 7 |
ej sunglasses.com | 3 |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| Language | Translations for "sunglasses"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses. | |
Albanian | gjyzlykë dielli. (various references) | |
Arabic | نظارة شمسية. (various references) | |
Asturian | gafes de sol. (various references) | |
Bulgarian | слънчеви очила. (various references) | |
Chamorro | antihos somnak. (various references) | |
Chinese | 太阳镜, 墨鏡 . (various references) | |
Danish | solbriller. (various references) | |
Dutch | zonnebril (sun-glasses). (various references) | |
Ecuadorian Quechua | inti lintis. (various references) | |
Faeroese | sólbrillur. (various references) | |
French | lunettes de soleil. (various references) | |
Frisian | sinnebril (sun-glasses). (various references) | |
German | Sonnenbrille (dark glasses, shade, sun glasses). (various references) | |
Greek | γυαλιά ηλίου. (various references) | |
Inuktitut | igaak qaumajuqsiutit. (various references) | |
Italian | occhiali da sole (shades). (various references) | |
Japanese Kanji | 黒眼鏡 (dark glasses, shady glasses), サロン的 (exclusive, sanction, sanctuary, Sangerism, sangria, sans couture, seamless, social, sour, sour cream, Sun, Sunkist, suntan oil, thank you, Thanksgiving Day). (various references) | |
Japanese Katakana | くろめがね (dark glasses, shady glasses), サングラス . (various references) | |
Korean | 색안경. (various references) | |
Macedonian | ochila za sonce. (various references) | |
Manx | speckleyryn greiney. (various references) | |
Pig Latin | unglassessay.(various references) | |
Portuguese | óculos de sol, óculos de resguardo. (various references) | |
Provencal | lunetas de solelh. (various references) | |
Romanian | ochelari (barnacles, Blinders, blinkers, eye-glass, glass, glasses, goggles, lorgnette, spectacles). (various references) | |
Russian | солнечный очки. (various references) | |
Samoan | mata (eye). (various references) | |
Spanish | gafas de sol. (various references) | |
Swedish | solglasögon (shade). (various references) | |
Turkish | güneş gözlüğü (blinkers, pair of sunglasses, shade). (various references) | |
Ukrainian | захисні окуляри від сонця. (various references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various translation references. | ||
| # of Phoneme Matches | Pronunciation | Word(s) rhyming with "sunglasses" (pronounced su"ngla'suz) |
| 6 | -g l a' s u z | eyeglasses. |
| 4 | -a' s u z | bypasses, overpasses. |
| 3 | -s u z | absences, abuses, acceptances, accomplices, aces, acquaintances, actresses, addresses, advances, affixes, albatrosses, aliases, allegiances, alliances, allowances, amaryllises, ambulances, annexes, announces, annoyances, apparatuses, appearances, appendixes, appliances, apprentices, asses, assesses, assurances, atlases, audiences, auspices, axes, congresses, consciences, consequences, continuances, contrivances, conveniences, converses, convinces, corpses, countenances, balances, bases, basses, biases, Biosciences, blesses, blitzes, blouses, boardinghouses, bonuses, bookcases, bosses, bounces, bourses, boxes, braces, briefcases, buses, businesses, Busses, buttresses, cabooses, cadences, campuses, canvases, canvasses, carcasses, Casas, cases, caucuses, cayuses, ceases, censuses, chances, chases, choices, choruses, circumstances, circuses, classes, clearances, clearinghouses, climaxes, clubhouses, coaxes, coffeehouses, coincidences, collapses, commences, complexes, compresses, concourses, condolences, conferences, confesses, confidences, courses, courthouses, creases, cresses, crevices, crocuses, crosses, crosspieces, crucifixes, curses, dances, databases, decreases, defenses, denounces, depresses, devices, differences, disabuses, disallowances, disappearances, discourses, discusses, dismisses, dispenses, displaces, distances, distresses, disturbances, divergences, divorces, dollhouses, doses, dresses, earpieces, eclipses, embarrasses, embraces, eminences, encompasses, endorses, enforces, enhances, entrances, erases, esses, evidences, excesses, excuses, exes, expanses, expenses, experiences, expresses, eyewitnesses, faces, farmhouses, faxes, fences, fetuses, finances, firehouses, fireplaces, fixes, flexes, flounces, focuses, forces, fortresses, foxes, fragrances, furnaces, fusses, gases, gasses, gearboxes, geniuses, glances, glasses, glimpses, glosses, goddesses, graces, grasses, greenhouses, grievances, grimaces, grosses, grouses, guesses, guesthouses, harnesses, headdresses, hindrances, hippopotamuses, hisses, hoaxes, horses, hospices, hostesses, houses, hyraxes, ices, illnesses, imbalances, impresses, impulses, incidences, inconveniences, increases, indexes, induces, indulgences, inferences, influences, injustices, instances, insurances, interfaces, intersperses, introduces, invoices, irises, issuances, juices, jukeboxes, justices, kisses, laces, lapses, latexes, leases, licences, licenses, lighthouses, likenesses, looses, losses, lynxes, mailboxes, marketplaces, masses, masterpieces, mattresses, medusas, messes, minibuses, minuses, misses, missus, mistresses, mixes, molasses, mongooses, morasses, mosses, mouthpieces, necklaces, nieces, nixes, notices, novices, nuances, nurses, observances, occurrences, offenses, offices, omnibuses, ordinances, orifices, ounces, outhouses, outpaces, overdoses, paces, palaces, paradoxes, passes, penises, performances, perplexes, perses, pieces, pizzas, places, pluses, polices, porpoises, possesses, poultices, powerhouses, practices, prances, preferences, prejudices, premises, presences, presses, pretenses, prices, princes, princesses, processes, produces, professes, progresses, prominences, promises, pronounces, prospectuses, protuberances, provinces, pulses, purchases, purposes, purses, pusses, racehorses, races, reassurances, recesses, reduces, references, refinances, reflexes, refocuses, rehearses, reimburses, reinforces, reintroduces, relapses, relaxes, releases, remembrances, reminiscences, reminisces, remittances, renounces, replaces, reproduces, repurchases, resemblances, residences, resources, responses, retroviruses, reverses, romances, sacrifices, sauces, sciences, sconces, seamstresses, senses, sentences, sequences, services, sexes, shoelaces, showcases, silences, sinuses, sixes, skyboxes, slaughterhouses, slices, solstices, sources, spaces, spices, splices, spouses, staircases, stances, statehouses, steakhouses, stewardesses, stresses, substances, successes, suffices, suitcases, suppresses, surfaces, surpasses, surpluses, surtaxes, taxes, terraces, tolerances, tortoises, tosses, townhouses, traces, treatises, tresses, trusses, typefaces, universes, uses, utterances, variances, vases, verses, versus, vices, viruses, voices, waitresses, walruses, waltzes, waxes, weaknesses, witnesses, workhorses, workplaces, xeroxes, yeses. |
Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits. | ||
Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams | |
| Words within the letters "a-e-g-l-n-s-s-s-s-u" | |
-2 letters: sunglass. | |
-3 letters: angelus, gasless, gausses, glasses, gunless, gunsels, lagunes, langues, sensual, sunless, unseals. | |
-4 letters: angels, angles, anuses, assess, gasses, gleans, gunsel, lagune, langue, lasses, lunges, sasses, slangs, susses, unless, unseal, usages, usneas. | |
-5 letters: agues, angel, angle, asses, elans, gales, gases, gauss, genua, genus, glans, glass, glean, glens, glues, guans, guess, gules, lanes, lases, leans. | |
| Words containing the letters "a-e-g-l-n-s-s-s-s-u" | |
+4 letters: glaucousnesses, sluggardnesses. | |
+5 letters: analogousnesses, garrulousnesses, glamorousnesses. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro. | |
| 1. Definition 2. Synonyms 3. Crosswords 4. Usage: Modern | 5. Usage: Commercial 6. Images: Slideshow 7. Images: Photo Album 8. Images: Digital Art | 9. Quotations: Non-fiction 10. Usage Frequency 11. Expressions 12. Expressions: Internet | 13. Translations: Modern 14. Rhymes 15. Anagrams 16. Bibliography |
Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
