Day | Mean of day in English Dictionary

/ˈdeɪ/

• Noun
• a period of 24 hours beginning at midnight
1. We're open seven days a week, 365 days a year.
2. Payment is due on the first day of every month.
3. “What day is (it) today?” “Tuesday.”
4. “What day [=date] is Friday?” “It's the 28th.”
5. “What day of the week is the 28th?” “It's a Friday.”
6. He spent five days in the hospital.
7. She left on Thursday and came back four days later.
8. The baby is due (to be born) in three days.
9. That was the happiest day of my life.
10. Parenthood gets better every day.
11. We'll be finished in a day or two. = We'll be finished in a couple of days.
12. It rained for a day and a half. [=it rained for about 36 hours]
13. The office is closed for the day.
14. I call him every (single) day.
15. Tomorrow is another day. [=there will be more opportunities to do things tomorrow]
16. a day of celebration/mourning [=a day for people to celebrate/mourn]
17. Take one pill two times a day. [=each day]
18. She works eight hours a day.
19. It costs 10 dollars a day to park there.
20. The party is the day after tomorrow. = The party is in two days.
21. It happened the day before yesterday. = It happened two days ago.
22. Sometimes they didn't speak to each other for days on end. [=several days]
23. From that day forth/forward [=(less formally) from then on], I was determined to do better.
24. “Today's my 50th birthday.” “Really? I'm surprised. You don't look a day over 40.” [=you don't look any older than 40 years old]
25. The man she's dating is 60 if he's a day. [=he is at least sixty years old]
• the time of light between one night and the next
1. What a beautiful summer day!
2. a cold/wet/rainy day
3. The shortest day of the year is usually December 22, and June 22 is usually the longest.
4. He sleeps during the day [=daytime] and works at night.
5. You can call me anytime, day or night.
6. These animals are mostly active during the day.
7. I work during the day. [=I work days]
8. She's a student by day [=during the day] and a waitress by night.
9. I woke at (the) break of day. [=(more commonly) dawn, daybreak, sunrise]
10. day workers [=people who work during the day]
• the part of the day when people are usually most active and when most businesses are open
1. I like to start my day with a cup of coffee. [=I like to drink a cup of coffee as soon as I wake up]
2. We decided to rent a car for the day.
3. How was your day?
4. By the end of the day, we were all exhausted.
5. Our neighbors play their loud music at all hours of the day. [=throughout the day]
6. Let's go to bed. We have an early day [=we will get out of bed early] tomorrow.
7. I needed to relax after a long day at work/school. [=after working/being at school for a long time]
8. “Thank you, ma'am. Have a nice day!”
9. I'll be gone all day.
10. It rained all day long.
11. Hurry up! I can't wait all day! = I don't have all day. = I haven't got all day.

• the hours during a day when a person works or goes to school or when a company does business
1. I put in four twelve-hour days [=workdays] this week.
2. She makes about 50 dollars a/per day.
3. He was late for his first day on the job.
4. They collected a full day's pay for half a day's work.
5. We had a busy couple of days at the store.
6. We have a short day tomorrow. [=we have to work fewer hours tomorrow than usual]
7. The school committee is pushing for a longer school day.
8. Tomorrow's our last day of school (for the school year).
9. Please allow 14 business days [=days when most businesses are open; weekdays that are not holidays] for delivery.
10. Solving violent crimes is all in a day's work for these police detectives.
11. He took the day off to go fishing.
• the day on which something specified happens or is expected to happen
1. It rained on their wedding day.
2. the day of his birth
3. This Sunday is family day [=a day for families especially with young children] at the amusement park.
4. If you've been waiting for the perfect skiing conditions, today's the day. [=the conditions are perfect today]
5. So, when's the big day? When are you getting married?
6. Did you ever think you'd see the day when he would apologize? [=did you believe he would ever apologize?]
7. I never thought I would live to see the day when you would graduate from college. [=I did not think I would live long enough to see you graduate]
8. Let her have her day in court [=let her defend herself in a court of law] before you pass judgment on her.
9. This is your lucky day. [=a day when something good happens to you]
10. You never know. Maybe today will be my day. [=maybe I will succeed, win, etc., today]
11. I'm sorry you lost. I guess it just wasn't your day.
12. “Do you think he'll ever admit he made a mistake?” “That'll be the day!”
• a particular period of time
1. She was the most talented actress of her day. [=during the time when she lived and worked as an actress]
2. In my day [=when I was young], boys asked girls out on dates, not the other way around.
3. Life was simpler in my grandmother's day, but it wasn't easier.
4. We sell books dating from 1875 to the present day. [=today]
5. He often spoke about his days as a soldier.
6. I was quite an athlete in my younger days. [=when I was young]
7. The practice dates back to the days of ancient Rome.
8. the olden days
9. my college days [=when I was in college]
10. the days of stagecoaches [=when stagecoaches were used]
11. In those days many factory workers were children.
12. When I was a kid, we spent our summers at the beach. Those were the days!
13. In the 1960s, everything seemed possible. Those were the good old days.
• within the next few days
1. We're expecting a phone call from him any day now. [=in the near future]
2. Any day now, the decision could be made.
• to win or be successful
1. The “no” vote carried the day. [=prevailed]
2. We believe that truth and justice will carry/win the day.
• for several days without stopping or changing
1. She wore the same pants day after day.
2. Day after day, we hear the same complaints from our customers.
• all the time
1. We've been working on it day and night. = We've been working on it night and day.
• complete or total
1. The difference between them is day and night. = The difference between them is night and day. [=they are completely different]
• in small amounts every day
1. Day by day, the situation is becoming more complex.
2. She felt herself growing stronger day by day. [=every day]
3. He hopes to make a full recovery after his surgery, but right now he's just taking it day by day. [=taking it one day at a time, taking each day as it comes]
4. I don't know if our relationship is going to work out. I'm taking things day by day at this point.
• every day for many days
1. She does the same thing at her job day in, day out.
2. It can be difficult to spend all of your time with one person day in and day out.
• every day
1. His opinions seem to change from day to day. [=from one day to the next]
• to pay attention to someone
1. No one would give us the time of day.
2. I needed their help, but they wouldn't give me the time of day.
• at the present time in history
1. Computers are essential to getting work done in this day and age. [=nowadays]
2. It's unbelievable that in this day and age people are still dying from hunger.
• to cause someone's day to be pleasant or happy
1. Thanks for the compliment. You've really made my day!
2. It made my day to see his smiling face.
• served in a restaurant as a special item on a particular day
1. What's the fish/vegetable of the day?
2. Our soup of the day [=du jour] is vegetable beef.
• of a particular period of time
1. What were some of the popular movies of the day? [=that were popular during that time]
2. the important issues of the day
• at some time in the future
1. One day, it'll happen. You'll see.
2. People may one day [=someday] be able to take vacations to the moon.
• on a day in the past
1. I went to her house one day and had lunch with her.
2. One day, we had a terrible argument.
• on the day that an event happens
1. I know we seem a bit disorganized now, but we'll be all right on the day.
2. Whether we win or not depends on which players are healthy on the day.
• to deal with each day's problems as they come instead of worrying about the future
1. There's no way to know what the future will bring, so just take each day as it comes and hope for the best.
2. Take one day at a time and don't expect things to change overnight.
3. It's important to take things one day at a time so you don't feel too overwhelmed.
• at the present time
1. It seems that everyone has a cell phone these days. [=nowadays]
2. What kind of music are you listening to these days?
3. These days, she has a very busy social life.
4. One of these days, [=one day] I'm going to buy myself a boat.
• a period of time in the past
1. Remember when we were kids and life was easy? Well, those days are gone.
2. In those days, women weren't allowed to own property.
3. No one knew in those days what caused the disease.
4. It's just one of those days when everything seems to go wrong.
5. I missed the bus and sprained my ankle; it was one of those days when nothing was going right.
• to exactly a specified number of years
1. It's been 100 years to the day since their great discovery.
2. Soon after their wedding, almost a year to the day, they got divorced.
• up to now
1. To this day, I still don't know what happened.
2. The belief persists to this day.