Meaning of light in English
Table of contents
Pronunciation
/laɪt/US accent
UK accent
to browse different examples of pronunciation.Verb
lightEtymology
Old English līhtan(in light (sense 2); also ‘lessen the weight of’), from light; compare with alightDefinitions
1. make lighter or brighterExamples
- « This lamp lightens the room a bit »
Derived terms
- 2. begin to smoke
Examples
- « After the meal, some of the diners lit up »
Derived terms
- 3. to come to rest, settle
Examples
- « Misfortune lighted upon him »
- 4. cause to start burning
Examples
- « subject to fire or great heat »
- « Great heat can ignite almost any dry matter »
- « Light a cigarette »
Antonyms
Derived terms
- 5. fall to somebody by assignment or lot
Examples
- « The task fell to me »
- « It fell to me to notify the parents of the victims »
- 6. get off (a horse)
Derived terms
Classifying Adjective
lightDefinitions
1. used of vowels or syllablesExamples
- « pronounced with little or no stress »
- « a syllable that ends in a short vowel is a light syllable »
- « a weak stress on the second syllable »
Synonyms
- 2. easily assimilated in the alimentary canal
Examples
- « not rich or heavily seasoned »
- « a light diet »
Synonyms
- 3. (used of soil) loose and large-grained in consistency
Examples
- « light sandy soil »
Synonyms
- 4. (of sound or color) free from anything that dulls or dims
Examples
- « efforts to obtain a clean bass in orchestral recordings »
- « clear laughter like a waterfall »
- « clear reds and blues »
- « a light lilting voice like a silver bell »
Synonyms
- 5. moving easily and quickly
Examples
- « nimble »
- « the dancer was light and graceful »
- « a lightsome buoyant step »
- « walked with a light tripping step »
Synonyms
- 6. demanding little effort
Examples
- « not burdensome »
- « light housework »
- « light exercise »
Synonyms
- 7. weak and likely to lose consciousness
Examples
- « suddenly felt faint from the pain »
- « was sick and faint from hunger »
- « felt light in the head »
- « a swooning fit »
- « light-headed with wine »
- « light-headed from lack of sleep »
Synonyms
- 8. very thin and insubstantial
Examples
- « thin paper »
- « flimsy voile »
- « light summer dresses »
Synonyms
- 9. less than the correct or legal or full amount often deliberately so
Examples
- « a light pound »
- « a scant cup of sugar »
- « regularly gives short weight »
Synonyms
- 10. having little importance
Examples
- « losing his job was no light matter »
Synonyms
- 11. intended primarily as entertainment
Examples
- « not serious or profound »
- « light verse »
- « a light comedy »
Synonyms
- 12. silly or trivial
Examples
- « idle pleasure »
- « light banter »
- « light idle chatter »
Synonyms
- 13. having a spongy or flaky texture
Examples
- « well-leavened »
- « light pastries »
Synonyms
- 14. designed for ease of movement or to carry little weight
Examples
- « light aircraft »
- « a light truck »
Synonyms
- 15. having relatively few calories
Examples
- « diet cola »
- « light (or lite) beer »
- « lite (or light) mayonnaise »
- « a low-cal diet »
Synonyms
- 16. (of sleep) easily disturbed
Examples
- « in a light doze »
- « a light sleeper »
- « a restless wakeful night »
Synonyms
- 17. casual and unrestrained in sexual behavior
Examples
- « her easy virtue »
- « he was told to avoid loose (or light) women »
- « wanton behavior »
Synonyms
Adverb
lightDefinitions
1. with few burdensExamples
- « experienced travellers travel light »
Noun
lightEtymology
Old English lēoht, līht (noun and adjective), līhtan (verb), of Germanic origin; related to Dutch licht and German Licht, from an Indo-European root shared by Greek leukos‘white’ and Latin lux‘light’Definitions
1. (physics) electromagnetic radiation that can produce a visual sensationExamples
- « the light was filtered through a soft glass window »
Derived terms
- 2. any device serving as a source of illumination
Examples
- « he stopped the car and turned off the lights »
Derived terms
- 3. a particular perspective or aspect of a situation
Examples
- « although he saw it in a different light, he still did not understand »
- 4. the quality of being luminous
Examples
- « emitting or reflecting light »
- « its luminosity is measured relative to that of our sun »
Derived terms
- 5. an illuminated area
Examples
- « he stepped into the light »
Derived terms
- 6. a condition of spiritual awareness
Examples
- « divine illumination »
- « follow God's light »
- 7. the visual effect of illumination on objects or scenes as created in pictures
Examples
- « he could paint the lightest light and the darkest dark »
Derived terms
- 8. a person regarded very fondly
Examples
- « the light of my life »
- 9. mental understanding as an enlightening experience
Examples
- « he finally saw the light »
- « can you shed light on this problem? »
- 10. having abundant light or illumination
Examples
- « they played as long as it was light »
- « as long as the lighting was good »
Antonyms
Derived terms
- 11. public awareness
Examples
- « it brought the scandal to light »
- 12. brightness and animation of countenance
Examples
- « he had a sparkle in his eye »
Derived terms
- 13. a divine presence believed by Quakers to enlighten and guide the soul
- 14. a visual warning signal
Examples
- « they saw the light of the beacon »
- « there was a light at every corner »
- 15. a device for lighting or igniting fuel or charges or fires
Examples
- « do you have a light? »
Derived terms
Qualitative Adjective
lightEtymology
Old English lēocht, līht (noun), lēohte (adverb), of Germanic origin; related to Dutch licht and German leicht, from an Indo-European root shared by lungDefinitions
1. of comparatively little physical weight or densityExamples
- « a light load »
- « magnesium is a light metal--having a specific gravity of 1.74 at 20 degrees C »
Synonyms
Antonyms
- 2. (used of color) having a relatively small amount of coloring agent
Examples
- « light blue »
- « light colors such as pastels »
- « a light-colored powder »
Synonyms
Antonyms
- 3. of the military or industry
Examples
- « using (or being) relatively small or light arms or equipment »
- « light infantry »
- « light cavalry »
- « light industry »
- « light weapons »
Synonyms
Antonyms
- 4. not great in degree or quantity or number
Examples
- « a light sentence »
- « a light accent »
- « casualties were light »
- « light snow was falling »
- « light misty rain »
- « light smoke from the chimney »
Synonyms
Antonyms
- 5. psychologically light
Examples
- « especially free from sadness or troubles »
- « a light heart »
Synonyms
Antonyms
- 6. characterized by or emitting light
Examples
- « a room that is light when the shutters are open »
- « the inside of the house was airy and light »
Synonyms
- ablaze(p)
- inflamed
- reddened
- bioluminescent
- bright
- candescent
- floodlit
- floodlighted
- fluorescent
- illuminated
- lighted
- lit
- well-lighted
- illuminating
- incandescent
- candent
- lamplit
- lighting-up(a)
- livid
- phosphorescent
- sunlit
- sunstruck
- white
- luminescent
Antonyms
- 7. of little intensity or power or force
Examples
- « the light touch of her fingers »
- « a light breeze »
Synonyms
Antonyms
- 8. (physics, chemistry) not having atomic weight greater than average
Examples
- « light water is ordinary water »
Antonyms
Famous quotes
- « Knowledge is love and light and vision. » Helen Keller
- « I like movies about longing and desperation, and dark and light things, stories about people struggling to raise children, and to have relationships and be intimate with each other. » Laura Dern
- « I love giving gifts and I love receiving them. I really like giving little kids extravagant gifts. You see their little faces light up and they get excited. If it's a really good gift, I love receiving it, like jewels, small islands. » Gina Gershon
- « Left to ourselves, we might pick the wrong health insurance, the wrong mortgage, the wrong school for our kids why, unless they stop us, we might pick the wrong light bulb. » Mitch Daniels
- « I have two children and it's amazing how in tune they are with nature, with light, with smells, with time. » Hugh Jackman