Meaning of light in English

1. Pronunciation

   /laɪt/

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1. Verb

   light

   Etymology

   Old English līhtan(in light (sense 2); also ‘lessen the weight of’), from light; compare with alight

   Definitions

   1. make lighter or brighter

   Examples

   • « This lamp lightens the room a bit »
2. 2. begin to smoke

   Examples

   • « After the meal, some of the diners lit up »
3. 3. to come to rest, settle

   Examples

   • « Misfortune lighted upon him »
4. 4. cause to start burning

   Examples

   • « subject to fire or great heat »
   • « Great heat can ignite almost any dry matter »
   • « Light a cigarette »

   Antonyms

   • snuff out
   • blow out
   • extinguish
   • quench
5. 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. 6. get off (a horse)

7. Classifying Adjective

   light

   Definitions

   1. used of vowels or syllables

   Examples

   • « 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

   • unstressed
   • unaccented
8. 2. easily assimilated in the alimentary canal

   Examples

   • « not rich or heavily seasoned »
   • « a light diet »

   Synonyms

   • digestible
9. 3. (used of soil) loose and large-grained in consistency

   Examples

   • « light sandy soil »

   Synonyms

   • loose
10. 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

    • pure
11. 5. moving easily and quickly

    Examples

    • « nimble »
    • « the dancer was light and graceful »
    • « a lightsome buoyant step »
    • « walked with a light tripping step »

    Synonyms

    • light-footed
12. 6. demanding little effort

    Examples

    • « not burdensome »
    • « light housework »
    • « light exercise »

    Synonyms

    • undemanding
13. 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

    • ill
    • sick
14. 8. very thin and insubstantial

    Examples

    • « thin paper »
    • « flimsy voile »
    • « light summer dresses »

    Synonyms

    • thin
15. 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

    • insufficient
    • deficient
16. 10. having little importance

    Examples

    • « losing his job was no light matter »

    Synonyms

    • insignificant
    • unimportant
17. 11. intended primarily as entertainment

    Examples

    • « not serious or profound »
    • « light verse »
    • « a light comedy »

    Synonyms

    • frivolous
18. 12. silly or trivial

    Examples

    • « idle pleasure »
    • « light banter »
    • « light idle chatter »

    Synonyms

    • frivolous
19. 13. having a spongy or flaky texture

    Examples

    • « well-leavened »
    • « light pastries »

    Synonyms

    • leavened
20. 14. designed for ease of movement or to carry little weight

    Examples

    • « light aircraft »
    • « a light truck »

    Synonyms

    • light-duty
21. 15. having relatively few calories

    Examples

    • « diet cola »
    • « light (or lite) beer »
    • « lite (or light) mayonnaise »
    • « a low-cal diet »

    Synonyms

    • nonfat
    • fat-free
    • fatless
22. 16. (of sleep) easily disturbed

    Examples

    • « in a light doze »
    • « a light sleeper »
    • « a restless wakeful night »

    Synonyms

    • shallow
23. 17. casual and unrestrained in sexual behavior

    Examples

    • « her easy virtue »
    • « he was told to avoid loose (or light) women »
    • « wanton behavior »

    Synonyms

    • unchaste

24. Adverb

    light

    Definitions

    1. with few burdens

    Examples

    • « experienced travellers travel light »

25. Noun

    light

    Etymology

    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 sensation

    Examples

    • « the light was filtered through a soft glass window »
26. 2. any device serving as a source of illumination

    Examples

    • « he stopped the car and turned off the lights »
27. 3. a particular perspective or aspect of a situation

    Examples

    • « although he saw it in a different light, he still did not understand »
28. 4. the quality of being luminous

    Examples

    • « emitting or reflecting light »
    • « its luminosity is measured relative to that of our sun »
29. 5. an illuminated area

    Examples

    • « he stepped into the light »
30. 6. a condition of spiritual awareness

    Examples

    • « divine illumination »
    • « follow God's light »
31. 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 »
32. 8. a person regarded very fondly

    Examples

    • « the light of my life »
33. 9. mental understanding as an enlightening experience

    Examples

    • « he finally saw the light »
    • « can you shed light on this problem? »
34. 10. having abundant light or illumination

    Examples

    • « they played as long as it was light »
    • « as long as the lighting was good »

    Antonyms

    • dark
    • darkness
35. 11. public awareness

    Examples

    • « it brought the scandal to light »
36. 12. brightness and animation of countenance

    Examples

    • « he had a sparkle in his eye »
37. 13. a divine presence believed by Quakers to enlighten and guide the soul
38. 14. a visual warning signal

    Examples

    • « they saw the light of the beacon »
    • « there was a light at every corner »
39. 15. a device for lighting or igniting fuel or charges or fires

    Examples

    • « do you have a light? »

40. Qualitative Adjective

    light

    Etymology

    Old English lēocht, līht (noun), lēohte (adverb), of Germanic origin; related to Dutch licht and German leicht, from an Indo-European root shared by lung

    Definitions

    1. of comparatively little physical weight or density

    Examples

    • « a light load »
    • « magnesium is a light metal--having a specific gravity of 1.74 at 20 degrees C »

    Synonyms

    • airy
    • buoyant
    • floaty
    • feathery
    • featherlike
    • lightweight
    • low-density(p)
    • featherweight
    • lighter-than-air

    Antonyms

    • heavy
41. 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

    • pale
    • pastel
    • powdery
    • palish

    Antonyms

    • dark
42. 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

    • light-armed
    • lightly-armed

    Antonyms

    • heavy
43. 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

    • easy

    Antonyms

    • heavy
44. 5. psychologically light

    Examples

    • « especially free from sadness or troubles »
    • « a light heart »

    Synonyms

    • fooling
    • casual

    Antonyms

    • heavy
45. 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

    • dark
46. 7. of little intensity or power or force

    Examples

    • « the light touch of her fingers »
    • « a light breeze »

    Synonyms

    • easy
    • gentle
    • soft

    Antonyms

    • heavy
47. 8. (physics, chemistry) not having atomic weight greater than average

    Examples

    • « light water is ordinary water »

    Antonyms

    • heavy