What does diurnal mean?
Word: Diurnal
Part of Speech: Adjective
Meaning: Diurnal means active during the day rather than at night, used mainly of animals and birds.
Word origin: From Latin diurnalis, daily, from dies, day.
How do you spell diurnal?
Syllables: di - ur - nal
Tricky part: The last syllable is a weak sound, so students write diurnel or diurnul; the word ends in al.
Watch out for: diurnel, diurnul, diurnall
Memory tip: A diurnal animal is out in daylight, and diurnal ends in the same al as animal.
Diurnal in a sentence
Example 1: Most monkeys in the Periyar reserve are diurnal, so early morning is the best time to spot them.
Example 2: Hens are diurnal birds and settle down to roost as soon as it gets dark.
Example 3: The scientists recorded the diurnal change in temperature, from the cool dawn to the hot afternoon.
Fun Fact
Diurnal and journal are cousins: a journal was first a book for each day's records, and both words come from Latin diurnalis, daily.
Practise the CREST Way
Spell Probe
Fill the blanks with 'i' and 'u'. Which option gives the meaning of that word?
1. d__ __rnal 2. et__rn__l 3. f__rn__ce 4. m__d__cal
a) a closed space with a very hot fire, used for heating metal
b) lasting or existing for ever
c) active during the day rather than at night
d) connected with illness and its treatment
Show answer
c) active during the day rather than at night. Only diurnal takes i then u; eternal needs e and a, furnace u and a, and medical e and i.
Word Tally
How many words are misspelt in the given sentence?
Squirrels and most butterflys are diurnal, so you will spot them in the gardan during the day.
a) 0
b) 2
c) 1
d) 3
Show answer
b) 2. Butterfly changes y to ies in the plural, and garden has an e: that makes 2 errors.
Sound Check
Which word does not rhyme with diurnal?
a) external
b) personal
c) colonel
d) journal
Show answer
b) personal. Personal has an extra syllable after its ur sound; journal, external and even colonel, said like kernel, all rhyme with diurnal.
Spell Spies
Choose the misspelt word/s in the given sentence:
Many diurnal birds, such as mynas and bulbuls, start singing just before sunrise and fall quiet soon after sunsett.
a) mynas and sunsett
b) only sunsett
c) diurnal and sunsett
d) only bulbuls
Show answer
b) only sunsett. Sunset keeps a single t at the end, like upset; mynas and bulbuls are the right plurals.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which word is the opposite of diurnal?
a) internal
b) eternal
c) external
d) nocturnal
Show answer
d) nocturnal
2. In astronomy, the diurnal motion of the stars is their ___.
a) distance from the Earth
b) daily movement across the sky
c) slow change in colour
d) size compared with the Sun
Show answer
b) daily movement across the sky
