sun-dried

IPA/ˈsʌn draɪd/
IPA/ˈsʌn draɪd/

sun-dried — adjective

1. describes food — especially tomatoes, fruit, or herbs — that has been left outsi

1.adjectiveB1
Definition

describes food — especially tomatoes, fruit, or herbs — that has been left outside in the sun to dry naturally, which concentrates its flavour and makes it last longer.

Example

Elena added a handful of sun-dried tomatoes to the pasta sauce for extra flavour.

sun-dried tomatoes — most common collocation

Minho spread sun-dried apricot jam on his morning toast.

sun-dried + fruit (apricot)

Common collocations
  • sun-dried tomatoes
  • sun-dried fruit
  • sun-dried apricots
  • sun-dried figs
  • sun-dried mango
  • sun-dried herbs
  • sun-dried mushrooms
Synonyms
  • air-dried

    broader term — can refer to drying by air movement indoors, not necessarily in direct sunlight

  • dehydrated

    more technical — often implies mechanical removal of moisture rather than natural sun drying

  • dried

    more general — includes all drying methods, not specifically by the sun

Antonyms
  • fresh

    not dried at all; in its natural state as picked or harvested

Grammar Patterns

sun-dried + noun

be sun-dried

Usage Note

Most commonly used before a noun (attributive position) to describe specific foods such as tomatoes, fruit, herbs, and mushrooms. Can also follow a linking verb (e.g. 'are', 'taste'), though this is less frequent. The hyphen is standard in formal writing, though 'sundried' appears informally.

Common Mistakes

I bought some sundried tomatos.
I bought some sun-dried tomatoes.
The standard spelling uses a hyphen, and 'tomatoes' is the correct plural form.
Sun-dried tomatoes are just dried tomatoes in a machine.
Sun-dried tomatoes are dried naturally in the sun, not in a machine.
'Sun-dried' specifically means dried by sunlight, not by any artificial method.

Word family

  • sun-dry
    verbC1
  • sun-drying
    nounC1
  • dried
    adjectiveA2
  • dry
    adjectiveA2

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

'Dried' is the broadest term — anything from laundry to fruit can be dried, by any method. 'Air-dried' means dried by exposure to circulating air, which may happen indoors or in the shade; it is often used for herbs and meats. 'Dehydrated' is a more technical or commercial term describing controlled removal of moisture, often with equipment (a dehydrator or oven). 'Cured' involves salt, sugar, or smoke in addition to drying — used for fish, meat, and some cheeses. 'Sun-dried' alone specifies natural heat and UV from the sun, which gives tomatoes, fruit, and chillies their intense, concentrated sweetness.

dried ↗air-dried ↗dehydrated ↗cured ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

  • naturally sun-dried
  • traditionally sun-dried
  • slowly sun-dried

Phrases

  • sun-dried tomatoes
  • sun-dried fruit
  • sun-dried herbs

Prepositions

  • sun-dried by the summer sun
  • sun-dried in the open air

Etymology

Old EnglishProto-GermanicEnglish

Formed by combining 'sun' (from Old English sunne, tracing back to Proto-Germanic sunnōn) and 'dried' (the past participle of 'dry', from Old English drygan, from Proto-Germanic drūgijan). The compound 'sun-dried' has been in use since the late 1500s, originally describing food preserved by exposure to natural sunlight before artificial drying methods existed.