What does light mean

Crossword clues for light

light

Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English

light

I.noun

COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES

a cigarette lighter (=something that produces a flame for lighting cigarettes)

▪ Does anyone have a match or a cigarette lighter?

a fine/light mist

▪ A fine mist began to settle on the water.

a gentle/light/soft tap

▪ There was a gentle tap on the door.

a light heart (=feeling happy)

▪ Paul left for home with a light heart.

a light lunch (=a small lunch)

▪ After a light lunch, he would take a nap each afternoon.

a light meal (=with not a lot of food)

▪ a light meal of salad

a light sleep (=a sleep from which you can easily be woken)

▪ I fell into a light sleep.

a light source (=something that produces light)

▪ The statue is illuminated by a hidden light source.

a light switch

▪ He reached for the light switch.

a light user (=someone who uses something only a little)

▪ Light users of the service will receive a reduction in their bill.

a lighted candle

▪ A procession moved through the village carrying lighted candles.

a light/heavy load (=not much or a lot of work)

▪ Hans has a heavy teaching load this semester.

a light/pale colour (=not dark or strong)

▪ Light colours make a room look larger.

a light/short sentence (=a short time in prison)

▪ We’re hoping that he gets off with a light sentence.

a light/slight/faint breeze

▪ The curtains lifted in the light breeze.

a lit/lighted/burning cigarette

▪ Someone dropped a lit cigarette and started the fire.

a lit/lighted/burning cigarette

▪ Someone dropped a lit cigarette and started the fire.

a small/light breakfast

▪ She ate a light breakfast of toast and coffee.

a street light/lamp

▪ It was getting dark, and the street lamps were already on.

a trick of the light

▪ At first he thought someone was coming towards him, but it was just a trick of the light.

a warning light

▪ Red warning lights were flashing.

artificial light/lighting

▪ Energy is being wasted by using artificial lighting when daylight is adequate.

artificial light/lighting

▪ Energy is being wasted by using artificial lighting when daylight is adequate.

blinding flash/light/glare etc

▪ the desert with its strange twisted plants and its blinding light

brake light

brilliant light

▪ She closed her eyes against the brilliant light.

chick lit

Christmas lights (=lights in the streets at Christmas, or on the Christmas tree)

▪ We went to see the Christmas lights in New York.

cigarette lighter

dark/light grey

▪ dark grey trousers

dark/light/pale/bright blue

▪ a dark blue raincoat

dark/light/pale/bright green

▪ a dark green dress

electric light/kettle/cooker etc

▪ the heat from a small electric fire

faint light

▪ the faint light of dawn

fairy lights

first light

gentle/light/moderate exercise (=not involving too much physical effort)

▪ Try to do some gentle exercise as part of your daily routine.

glaring light

▪ the glaring light of high noon

green light

▪ The government has given the green light to Sunday trading.

halogen bulb/lamp/light etc

hazard lights

heavy/light oil

▪ 2,000 barrels of heavy oil are produced a day.

▪ The oil corporation announced the discovery of another field of light oil.

heavy/light polling (=with many or few people voting)

heavy/light trading (=a lot of trading or a little trading)

▪ Shares dropped 10% in heavy trading.

heavy/light

▪ She was wearing a heavy coat and a thick scarf.

leaded lights

light a candle

▪ She lit a candle in the church.

light a cigarette

▪ Will went outside and lit a cigarette.

light a lamp

▪ Elizabeth lit the lamps and started rebuilding the fire.

light aircraft

light ale

light and airy

▪ All the hotel’s bedrooms are light and airy.

light beerespecially AmE (= lower in alcohol or calories than normal beer)

▪ He claims light beer has no flavor.

light bulb

light clothing (=made from thin materials)

▪ You’ll only need light clothing during the day.

light comedy (=about subjects that are not very serious)

▪ He is clearly talented at light comedy.

light duties (=not involving hard physical work)

▪ He'd been wounded, sent home and put on light duties.

light entertainment (=shows etc that are funny and easy to understand rather than serious)

▪ He believes that children can appreciate more than just light entertainment.

light heavyweight

light industry (=industries that involve the production of small goods)

▪ Jobs in light industry are increasing.

light industry

light meter

light pen

light pollution

light railway

light reading (=things that are easy and enjoyable to read)

▪ a bit of light reading for my holiday

light show

light sleeper (=someone who wakes easily)

light snacks

▪ Drinks and light snacks are served at the bar.

light snow (=when only a small amount falls)

▪ A light snow had begun to fall.

light wine (=without a lot of alcohol)

▪ The wine is light and refreshing.

light work (=work that is not physically hard)

▪ He had been ill, but she found him some light work to do.

light year

▪ a star 3,000 light years from Earth

light years ahead (=much more advanced)

▪ This design is light years ahead in performance and comfort.

light

▪ The traffic is fairly light at this time of day.

light

▪ The punishment seemed very light.

light (=with little water coming down)

▪ A light rain began to fall.

light/gentle (=not strong)

▪ Winds tomorrow will be light.

lighting rig

lightning lights (up) sth

▪ Lightning lit up the room briefly.

light/pale brown

▪ a light brown jacket

light/sandy (=containing a lot of sand)

▪ Some plants prefer sandy soils.

neon lights/signs (=ones that use neon)

▪ the neon lights of Las Vegas

painted...in a bad light (=described him in a way that made him seem bad)

▪ The article painted him in a bad light.

parking light

pilot light

reversing light

sb's eyes light up (=become excited)

▪ His eyes lit up when I mentioned the word money.

sb’s face lights up/brightens (=they start to look happy)

▪ Denise’s face lit up when she heard the news.

security light

see/present sth in a positive light (=see or present something as good)

▪ If you spend a year travelling after school, employers often see this in a positive light.

▪ The merger was presented to the world in a positive light.

shaft of light/sunlight

sound-level/light etc meter

Southern Lights

start/light a fire

▪ It was too damp to light a fire.

strip light

strip lighting

strobe light

tail light

the light of the moon

▪ The clouds blocked out the light of the moon.

the morning sun/light/mist

▪ the warmth of the morning sun

thin/light cotton

▪ a thin cotton dress

traffic lights

travel light (=not take many things with you)

▪ The idea was to travel light, so Travis allowed her to pack only one change of clothing.

UV light/radiation/rays etc

▪ the sun's harmful UV rays

wall-mounted clock/heater/lights etc

weak light

▪ He had only a weak light to see by.

COLLOCATIONS FROM CORPUS

■ ADJECTIVE

artificial

▪ Few people have not woken to the sounds of the dawn chorus nor seen moths drawn to artificial lights as daylight fades.

▪ It should be cultivated in moderately diffused or artificial light.

▪ Official sketches show a small warren of rooms, lit by artificial lights and stuffed with compact biological systems.

▪ Among these is James Casebere, who photographs miniature architectural constructions in artificial light.

▪ Their facial features are indistinguishable, brightly lit though they are by harsh artificial lights.

▪ The algae were cultivated under artificial light.

▪ The room is safe, enclosed, protected from the harsh glare of artificial light.

bad

▪ I've seen him at a distance, I've seen him in bad light.

▪ In an effort to restrain himself, he tried to imagine things in the worst possible light.

▪ They perch too far away in bad light.

▪ Middlesex forfeited their first innings and Durham were 11 without loss in their second innings when bad light ended play.

▪ Another break for bad light gave the fast men a breather.

▪ Leapor places all of these concerns in the worst possible light.

▪ The Wednesday result shouldn't be considered in too bad a light.

▪ Rain and bad light brought several interruptions, made batting difficult, and took the game into a second day.

bright

▪ Under bright overhead lights at one end of the shed a chair had been positioned, banked on three sides by sandbags.

▪ The double glazing had a metal layer that helped to create the reflective view from outside and cut down bright light inside.

▪ He crept to the door and opened it, blinking at the bright light.

▪ Keep the plant in bright light.

▪ Zen was sitting on a stool under a bright light in a small white-curtained cubicle, thinking about Trotsky and the ice-man.

▪ My only wish is that the bright lights were dimmed a bit for the dinner crowd.

▪ Some absorb the gas quickly, whereas others circulate it slowly and can not respond to floods of bright light.

▪ Photophobic children are often recommended to wear dark or tinted glasses to ease the discomfort caused by bright light.

brilliant

▪ As I climb, I think of the butterflies, the dreams of the holy men, fluttering in a brilliant light.

▪ And then there was a brilliant light and the Beast turned into a handsome prince.

▪ Within the box, suspended at its centre, glows a point of brilliant, pale-blue light.

▪ It casts a brilliant light on everyone around him.

▪ I awoke next morning to a brilliant pearly light, but when I went to the window, no sea was visible.

▪ I would be washed clean by the brilliant blue light, by the warm, golden sun.

▪ Beams of brilliant light jerked across the far wall and, slowly, the bars began to char.

▪ Over 20, 000 residents are awakened by a brilliant flash of light and heat to find their city in flames.

cold

▪ The cold green fluorescent lights are blazing, and Kim is at work taping ankles.

▪ The red maples have just shed their seeds, and two species of fireflies flash their cold white lights on warm evenings.

▪ Then they unrolled as a silver-white fleece, under the silent cold light of the moon.

▪ Through the frosted window blazed the cold light of winter morning; sidelight, the most harsh.

▪ A cold grey light made its way round the corners of the curtains and trickled into the room.

▪ He switched off his lamp to watch the cold, silver light settle over the church and headstones.

different

▪ It makes you think about those sullen high schoolers in a different light, see their lives along a time line.

▪ The girls regarded it in a different light.

▪ They get to see women in a different light.

▪ The Dark Elves see Khaine in a different light.

▪ The officer was city-bred and educated, so that the false teeth appeared to him in a different light.

▪ I view parallels to Piggy and Simon in a different light.

▪ It involves reflecting light of a quite different color-invisible light in the form of X ray radiation-off certain crystals.

dim

▪ Flickering beams of dim light came with it, caressing the machinery which shielded their source from direct view.

▪ Only a dim light glowed in the direction of the stairs.

▪ Looking at him in the dim light I saw he was clad only in vest and pants.

▪ No one dared to object to him directly about his dim light, though some people grumbled about it in loud whispers.

▪ There were only two dim lights flickering from two iron brackets high up on the wall.

▪ They sat at the table in dim light going over pronunciations.

▪ The two men looked at each other in the dim light, their faces grey and weary.

▪ Not so beautiful by day, perhaps, but in dim light they look like movie stars.

electric

▪ The electric light was an invention with profound existential consequences.

▪ There were electric lights burning at the entryway.

▪ There is no electric light, and the floor is compacted earth.

▪ I let out an involuntary gasp. Electric lights sprang on all over the ceiling in an irregular pattern.

▪ A moment later, all the electric lights went out.

▪ Travellers very often notice that electric light and trams are brought into streets which as yet have no houses.

▪ It foresaw electric light, credit cards, shopping malls and electronic broadcasting.

▪ When lit only by the electric lights, the large figures in the foreground appear thicker, more dimensional.

faint

▪ A faint sliver of light showed along the bottom of the door on his right.

▪ A laser transmitted faint light signals to an electronic detector.

▪ Standing all day on the wet clay floor under the dropping ceiling in the faint light cast by tallow candles was grim.

▪ After a sharp turn in the path, they are suddenly approaching a faint square of light.

▪ M56 is not at all prominent, but shows up as a faint patch of light.

▪ When I saw the faint glow of light in the distance, it scarcely registered with me.

▪ A faint yellow light filtered through the thin curtains.

▪ A faint light now appears behind the beaded curtain of one of the houses that face the courtyard.

fluorescent

▪ There was no floodlighting here, only a small fluorescent light over the entrance.

▪ While the other tour members chatted and compared equipment Mom stood to one side, her face pale under the fluorescent lights.

▪ Down below were the pink seashell murals lit by fluorescent lights, and distant black and white movies on the screen.

▪ I bought nine fluorescent light fixtures-bulbs, ballast, and wire.

▪ There was a skim of grease that shone in the fluorescent light of the Kitchen.

▪ On the desk was what appeared to be a fluorescent light box the size of a briefcase.

▪ Lightning flashed again, brilliant as a fluorescent light.

▪ Strips of fluorescent lights struggled against the gloominess of the space.

green

▪ General Thurman still had to receive a final green light from the president once he had worked out a plan.

▪ But after waiting years for the building permits, Rohr got the green light to build just as the market turned down.

▪ A solitary street-lamp shed feeble green light, leaving most of the street in shadow.

▪ The coaches may have been flashing the green light, but all the players saw was a blinking red.

▪ An enormous structure, resembling a Calder mobile, and hung with green and blue lights, revolves slowly.

▪ The action got a green light Monday from the Food and Drug Administration.

▪ Upon the dashboard of a black Cadillac sedan parked in a nearby side-road a green light began to flash furiously.

▪ There was this eerie green light.

harsh

▪ Chapter Twenty one Urquhart flicked the main switch and she blinked as the room was washed by the harsh overhead light.

▪ In the harsh light, its most notable feature is a small metal grate over a drain in the very center.

▪ The harsh lights that the photographers had used still glared down on the scene.

▪ The president of the bank was a hard-faced aesthete with cheekbones so deeply indented that he appeared skull-like under harsh ceiling lights.

▪ The space underneath was filled with a harsh light of burnished gold.

▪ Their facial features are indistinguishable, brightly lit though they are by harsh artificial lights.

▪ The presence of Jen was like a harsh light in his eyes.

▪ The refugees stumbled toward military buses, blinking at the harsh lights.

natural

▪ Table 11.2 shows times when natural light is recommended or advised against.

▪ Saconi was in there at one of the tables, blithe and ambivalent in the diffused natural light.

▪ Whilst we stress the artificial nature of most time-cues, it would be misleading to suggest that natural light is without effect.

▪ A special feature is a cantilevered bay window which is designed to create more space and to give plenty of natural light.

▪ Other requirements: Light: Needs very good light, especially natural light.

▪ Soane created a beautifully spacious building, awash in natural light.

▪ Modern school buildings make as much use as possible of natural light, incorporating as they do large windows.

▪ He worked out of doors, with natural light and a white background.

new

▪ The neutron observations may help cast new light on solar flares and solar activity.

▪ Hajdu sheds new, revelatory light on the complex relationship between Strayhorn and Ellington.

▪ This guy Rufus appears in a new light.

▪ The Agency is always willing to consider a man in a new light.

▪ What had to be understood was the process which led to the evolution of society seen in this new light.

▪ And marketing executives began looking at the Hispanic population in a new light.

▪ Campaigners now hope parish councillors will abandon their scheme for 30 new lights and accept alternative proposals instead.

▪ That throws a whole new light on it.

poor

▪ Her tests for the relation between grammatical structure and context formation similarly show the unschooled Wolof children in a poor light.

▪ The poor light barely reached the chamber's four walls.

▪ The curtains in the flat were drawn, cutting down even the poor light that remained from outside.

▪ Then, having ensured that the match would finish so late, Moin complained about the poor light.

▪ Delgard paused at the top of the stairs, allowing his eyes to adjust to the poor light.

▪ Even if, in the poor light, you did see it, you would dismiss it.

▪ Should children attempt to read in poor light?

▪ He glanced at his watch, bringing it close to his face because of the poor light.

positive

▪ Yet the presentational imperative to project the policies of government in a positive light masked the existence of inner doubts.

▪ You can always interpret things in a more positive light or a more negative light.

▪ It was as if a door had opened before him into a dim but positive light.

▪ Books portraying black men in a positive light are simply not part of the growth industry.

▪ This may help one to see the beauty and wisdom of the natural world in a much more positive light.

▪ By contrast, 57 percent viewed Dole in a positive light, while only 27 percent saw him in a negative light.

▪ Present everything in a positive light.

red

▪ The Governor's sanctum was a leviathan suffused with the same dreary red light.

▪ The deeper they live, the less red light penetrates compared with blue.

▪ There were red lights in her curls which she had never noticed and her complexion was without flaw.

▪ The greener the water, the less red or blue light penetrates.

▪ Down below, two points of red light appear, one at a time like a wink in reverse.

▪ The bigger issue is, will San Franciscans still be allowed to run red lights across Market Street?

▪ One red light came on faintly.

▪ The flashing red light went out, to be replaced by a steady light of a soothing green.

soft

▪ On the landing a soft light shone into the dark from the corridor, as in memory.

▪ A soft pinkish light played against the curtains.

▪ In the soft evening light, I retraced my steps back to town, soothed by the songs of blackbirds and chaffinches.

▪ The soft light of dusk was thinning, leaving trees and buildings blackened agalnst the evening sky.

▪ Through the curtains a soft grey light is creeping.

▪ She took her place at his side again, and watched the exquisitely etched face in the soft light.

▪ His olive skin seemed to glint in the soft light of the hallway; the flat behind him was almost totally dark.

▪ As the students are talking, a wave of soft, vague light, of sleepy distraction, passes over Primo.

strong

▪ It will even tolerate strong light, when the colour of the leaves will intensify.

▪ These more primitive readings in sharar throw a particularly strong light on the occurrence of the institution narrative there.

▪ Too strong light should be avoided, as it has the habit of developing leaves above the water.

▪ The color of the lower surface is more intense in stronger light.

▪ Other requirements: Light: Needs strong light.

▪ Her work still casts a strong light.

▪ Given strong light, the plant will grow stronger, with deep coloration.

▪ Often these were accompanied by strong flashes of light.

■ NOUN

street

▪ The road was closed for a while because of a dangerous street light.

▪ Also on the list: Third Street light rail: Check.

▪ The street lights are still on, but the sky ain't black no more.

▪ As they approached the corner, the street lights came on.

▪ Gas was used in houses and for street lights from the early nineteenth century.

▪ The track awakes in the half light of dawn, when there are still misty halos around the street lights.

▪ Just then, the street lights come on.

▪ The city also gave an additional $ 20, 000 for banners to be hung from street lights.

traffic

▪ The letters are divided into traffic light colours to signal to customers whether their endowment will pay off their mortgage.

▪ I usually posted myself then at a busy intersection where a traffic light controlled commuter flow from Newark.

▪ Anger is like a red light at the traffic lights.

▪ Cars have been stolen at traffic lights.

▪ Up ahead the traffic lights were on red but he didn't slow up.

▪ Julie didn't answer, but drove on towards the traffic lights, glancing again in the rear-view mirror.

▪ She slowed down at the traffic lights by Sloane Street.

▪ The woman was killed while she was out walking with her husband, when two cars collided at traffic lights.

warning

▪ The warning light came on, and it's thought that was the point at which the pilot radioed for help.

▪ Looking right then left he saw the signals with their warning lights reassuring him of their presence.

▪ But when the pilot switched on his flight systems, a red warning light glowed.

▪ Barriers and warning lights were put up and further warning lights were placed a short distance away.

▪ It is because at this time the warning light is more easily visible in the twilight than in the daylight.

▪ The bulb had obviously been hit hard soas to break its filament, to ensure no warning light came on.

■ VERB

bathe

▪ The fields and woods were bathed in golden light overlaid with a blue haze of heat.

▪ We looked like Superman escorting Howdy Doody, and I bathed in the light of his company.

▪ Multi-bracketed candelabra placed along the centre helped the sconce torches to bathe the room in light.

▪ Even the water tower in Addison, a northern suburb, is bathed in blue light.

▪ The castle was bathed in a flickering light.

▪ Conversely, Cafe Pinot bathes in the light of learning shed by the L.A.

▪ But then the sun broke through and the field, the altar, the tree, was bathed in a pure light.

▪ He threw open a side door off the first-floor hall, and we were bathed in light.

cast

▪ Overhead, a bulb casts an eerie bluish light.

▪ Biophysics is certainly able to cast significant light on processes occurring within living cells.

▪ The sun had just gone down, and our apartment was cast in a pale-pastel light.

▪ Moreover Pound's anti-Semitism, later so notorious, certainly casts a sinister light on his readiness to broach these issues.

▪ It casts a brilliant light on everyone around him.

▪ Street lights are not too bad because they don't shine directly into your face and only cast a fairly soft light.

▪ Her work still casts a strong light.

fade

▪ Some likened it to facing the fast bowler Curtly Ambrose in a fading light.

▪ In the fading light of the patio, Yolanda can not make out the expression on the dark face.

▪ The lights were fading - the lights had all gone out.

▪ There was a fading light I had never quite seen.

▪ I turned to warn Tam and Richie, whom I could just see in the fading light.

flash

▪ It's like she flashed a bright light in my eyes, and I have to look away.

▪ The door opened and flashed with light and then it slammed.

▪ They'd paint them pink and mark them with big, yellow, flashing lights.

▪ Properly crafted, such legislation raises legitimate questions about the extent and nature of U.S. involvement and flashes warning lights.

▪ He wanted to know why I was flashing the light.

▪ For the remainder of the evening, Barbara and A. B. Everage honked their horn and flashed their lights.

▪ The nomes had learned to be worried by things with flashing blue lights on top.

see

▪ Out in the street afterwards they wandered around the corner into Leicester Square to see the Christmas lights.

▪ Freedom of press, seen in this light, becomes a questionable guarantee.

▪ She toiled up the stairs, and saw that a light showed on the landing above.

▪ But then I saw this bright light at the window.

▪ People won't admit it, they're too busy grabbing to see that the lights have fused.

▪ Then I seen in the light, like inside it, with the light all around, a person.

▪ But, like the National Health Service, education could be seen in a different light.

▪ Rather than seeing a light at the end of the sanctions tunnel, Hussein felt increasingly boxed in.

shed

▪ In this chapter, some of the evidence will be reviewed which sheds some light on three questions.

▪ Hajdu sheds new, revelatory light on the complex relationship between Strayhorn and Ellington.

▪ Sometimes they can have a mythical dimension, images that shed a new light on traditions of wisdom or legend.

▪ A streetlight beside an elementary school shed just enough light to let me make sense out of the map.

▪ Unfortunately, he didn't, nor was the lecturer, when asked, able to shed any light on the subject.

▪ Can you shed any light on my quest?

▪ A solitary street-lamp shed feeble green light, leaving most of the street in shadow.

▪ Podesta's role sheds light on both questions.

PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES

a ray of hope/light etc

▪ Amid the crushing disappointment of the general election there was a ray of light for the Conservatives.

▪ Besides, today there had been a ray of hope.

▪ But only when a ray of light attempts to pierce this darkness does the real, eerie action unroll.

▪ But the Red Or Dead catwalk show offered a ray of hope.

▪ Each time a ray of light passes through a lens it is slightly weakened.

▪ The Government's resignation is a victory, a ray of hope to take into the dark days ahead.

ambient temperature/light etc

▪ Homeothermy or Homoiothermy Temperature regulation in tachymetabolic species in which core temperatures remain roughly steady despite ambient temperature changes.

▪ If you space heat then you will have an ambient temperature of 75-80°F and even higher humidity.

▪ It really comes into its own with flash as the metering balances the flash against the ambient lighting conditions with great results.

▪ Odour emissions are affected by wind direction, temperature inversion, ambient temperatures and humidity.

▪ The ambient temperature for each day of the study was determined from local weekly weather statistics.

▪ The ambient temperature in Celsius is roughly equal to the number of cricket chirps in 8 seconds plus 5.

at first light

▪ The search continued at first light.

▪ They left camp at first light and were in the mountains by nightfall.

▪ A small flock of evening grosbeaks flew over, and at first light I heard chickadees and goldfinches.

▪ It was black as night at new moon and white as frost at first light.

▪ Mountain rescue teams continued the hunt overnight, and a full-scale search resumed at first light.

▪ The ambush would leave its position the next morning, at first light, to return.

▪ The Caribou took off at first light.

▪ We have had trouble at first light with the Khmer Rouge.

be all sweetness and light

▪ The negotiations were not all sweetness and light.

be bathed in light/sunshine etc

▪ He threw open a side door off the first-floor hall, and we were bathed in light.

big/light/fussy etc eater

▪ During the time she was living with the Abramses, Katelyn was happy and a big eater, Carter said.

▪ While never a big eater, he did tend to snack it through the day and night.

cast light on/onto sth

▪ The convergence of the techniques will cast light on perspectives and how they are controlled.

▪ The different ways in which superantigens activate T cells casts light on the pathogenesis of infectious disease.

▪ The incident has cast light on the creeping privatisation of the drug war.

▪ The investigation explores the possibility of using probate inventories to cast light on this and related questions.

▪ We use this to cast light on a metaphor of which we are given no other interpretation.

dim your headlights/lights

dip your headlights/lights

▪ He put his foot on the accelerator and dipped his headlights.

drenched in/with light

give sb/sth the green light

▪ The board just gave us the green light to begin research.

▪ Doctors gave him the green light yesterday to start against New Orleans on Sunday night.

▪ Everyone has given it the green light.

guiding light/hand/star

▪ And that is what Aeneas's young son did under the guiding hand of Alecto.

▪ Eddie was his hero, his guiding light.

▪ Father Peter, its guiding light, was also its provider of funds and sustenance.

▪ That will be the guiding light of the next Labour government.

▪ To followers, he is more than just a guiding light - he is the Messiah.

▪ Under Mr Yarrow's guiding hand, the reputation of the school was untarnished, these five long years.

hide your light under a bushel

in the cold light of day

▪ I knew that, in the cold light of day, he held all the aces.

▪ Night-time madness isn't appealing, seen in the cold light of day.

jump a light

leading light

▪ Another was a leading light opera singer in the local community.

▪ By now, Braudel had become one of its leading lights, and from 1956 to 1968 he was virtually its editor.

▪ Harrison, a man of simple birth and high intelligence, crossed swords with the leading lights of his day.

▪ On renouncing alcohol he was pardoned and he set sail for Darlington where he became a leading light in the Society.

▪ She loves gym workouts, swimming and playing netball - she is a leading light in a local women's team.

▪ The merchants were the leading lights of the popolo grasso or rich bourgeoisie.

▪ This victory may set Stretch up with a world-title elimination fight with Britain's other leading light middleweight, Chris Pyatt.

light years ago

light years ahead/better etc than sth

light/comic relief

▪ After a day's work, it was a bit of light relief to use it.

▪ After this beginning some light relief must have been welcome.

▪ All we can say is that, between them, the team eventually raises £3,450 for Comic Relief charities.

▪ Cold people shake Comic Relief canisters.

▪ For comic relief, obviously; but we also suspect a topical reference worth considering as evidence in the dating game.

▪ Her only light relief was Tony, who took her out every night.

▪ If it afforded the guardians a little light relief, the minutes do not suggest that the complaint was taken anything but seriously.

▪ Then, for light relief, this page: murder and murder trials.

light/fair/dark complected

make short/light work of sth

▪ But she made light work of polishing off the shopping at a supermarket near her West London home.

▪ Carmen would have made short work of Michael too.

▪ Fourth placed Guisborough made short work of the opposition at Saltburn.

▪ Guernsey made short work of the opposition when they won the event on home soil in 1990.

▪ It is fair to warn anglers that thousands of crabs soon make short work of rag and lugworm.

▪ It made short work of our Windows performance tests, WinTach, clocking up an impressive index of over 9.3.

▪ The second game we pull away early and make short work of it.

▪ Willie Thorne made light work of the promising Nottinghamshire youngster, Anthony Hamilton, as he eased into the last 16.

naked light/flame/sword etc

▪ A very powerful naked light bulb hung from the office ceiling.

▪ Both men were armed, each carrying a naked sword and dirk.

▪ He is like a naked light.

▪ Obviously this is untrue - it is not the naked light that Blanche can not stand, it is the truth.

▪ She likes to cover up the truth like she covers over the naked light.

▪ She turned, all flaxen and pink and white, haloed by the naked light bulbs round the mirror.

▪ This gives a double meaning to Blanche's hatred of naked light.

play a hose/light on sth

play of light

▪ I have a wonderful play of light and shade, and the tungsten light gives a very similar effect.

▪ Make notes as you watch the play of light in various areas as the sun tracks east to west across the sky.

pool of water/blood/light etc

▪ A pool of light, expanding circles, merging, dragging me down.

▪ A guard found him lying in a pool of blood, and a doctor saved him.

▪ After they are replaced, the spent fuel rods are cooled for several years in pools of water at the plants.

▪ His black telephone sat captive in a pool of light, ready for interrogation.

▪ She leaves the coach and wanders through fields for many miles until between trees she sees a deep black pool of water.

▪ The kind of pool of light depends on whether the bulb fitted inside is a spot, flood or an ordinary bulb.

▪ Then on the fifth day, mid-morning, a pool of light as pale and clear as moonstone appeared on the horizon.

▪ There was a pool of blood on the tarmac now, around his head.

punch sb's lights out

run a (red) light

▪ An old man who worked in a poultry store was stopped for running a light.

▪ For every motorist who runs a red light, there are five pedestrians who do it.

▪ It was going to sea with only its running lights on.

▪ Jones still faces a misdemeanor charge of reckless driving and an infraction for running a red light.

▪ Men are more likely to run a red light, forget to signal, or drink and drive.

▪ The running lights flashed off and a thick silence filled up the day.

▪ The bigger issue is, will San Franciscans still be allowed to run red lights across Market Street?

▪ When you run a red light, a few coins save a fine.

see the light

▪ But soon he could only see the lights of the boat in the distance.

▪ Each has attracted his or her share of supporters who could also see the light once it was pointed out to them.

▪ Five minutes later he saw the lights of a village pub.

▪ From two blocks away you can see the light radiating up into the sky.

▪ It was uncanny and Maggie was never so glad to see the light from her own room and get Ana back indoors.

▪ One must have experienced deeply, known greatness - seen the light, as he said.

▪ Sadly, for it was a lively, largely autobiographical piece, it would never see the light of day.

▪ You were sitting in your seat, pressed back by the acceleration, and you saw the light beams curve.

see the light of day

▪ Business contracts go through armies of lawyers before they see the light of day.

▪ Most observers predict the bill won't see the light of day until at least January.

▪ And eventually, Guinness as we know it, rich subtle and dark, is ready to see the light of day.

▪ Get to the back of the drawers and cupboards - areas which don't often see the light of day.

▪ I am not too worried about the new council tax because I doubt whether it will see the light of day.

▪ I never sold a garment or got an order from this source, I wonder if they saw the light of day.

▪ Many of Brindley's ideas were regarded as the hair-brained schemes of a madman which would never see the light of day.

▪ Sadly, for it was a lively, largely autobiographical piece, it would never see the light of day.

▪ The implication must be that a lot of bids are being planned but never see the light of day.

▪ There's so much good stuff that has never seen the light of day.

shed light

▪ A fretful wind was not enough to open them and shed light on the ruptured earth in which they lay.

▪ An analysis of the results should shed light on the workings of the Northern Ireland labour market.

▪ Brophy said the man was not considered a suspect, but investigators hope he can shed light on what started the blaze.

▪ Eastin and her task force hope to shed light on the challenge by early next year.

▪ Podesta's role sheds light on both questions.

▪ The extent of Hygeberht's authority perhaps sheds light on Offa's principal area of interest.

▪ Therefore they shed light on the comparative institutional questions with which we are concerned.

show sb in a good/bad etc light

streak of lightning/fire/light etc

▪ A streak of lightning split the sky.

▪ Sometimes there is hope, a streak of light, a blur on a piece of film.

▪ The three women were wreaking havoc with their guns that fired streaks of light.

▪ There was another streak of lightning overhead.

string of pearls/lights/beads etc

▪ A string of lights on the prom Dancing mad in the storm Who lives in such a place?

▪ A string of pearls was around her neck, and the bones of her right hand clutched a Bible.

▪ Beads can choke babies if swallowed, and long strings of beads can also half-strangle older children.

▪ Careful inspection of the image showed what looked like a string of pearls embedded in a bright haze.

▪ There was a cavity beneath with a string of pearls in it.

▪ When the harbor across the bay becomes a string of lights, foghorns take up the bass.

the Southern Lights

the bright lights

▪ First I turned off the brightest lights.

▪ He gestured toward the street, the bright lights of Osaka shining before us.

▪ In the bright lights of the foyer his face was clearly illuminated.

▪ Instead Elizabeth spent a year at business college in St Albans before joining the bright lights of London's magazine world.

▪ It had to be the cold air and the bright lights against the darkness.

▪ Self- imposed pressure Lately, she has wondered if her message is getting lost in the bright lights of television.

▪ Under the bright lights in the train, both boy and man look pale, lifeless.

▪ Young Gilbey's passion was cars and he skipped going to university to move to the bright lights of London.

throw a light/shadow

▪ Begin from a fighting stance, perhaps by throwing a light snap punch into the opponent's face from the front hand.

▪ But the flames were growing higher, throwing light, casting dancing shadows.

▪ Fossils do throw light on the history of the lateral line and tail.

▪ Geographical comparison of patterns of lawbreaking sometimes throws light on more general differences in social and economic conditions.

▪ He uses relativity to throw light on time and eternity, and indeterminacy to comment on free will.

▪ The role of premises is to throw light on a subject; the role of evidences is to give weight to it.

▪ Understanding the nature and activities of such organisations helped throw light upon issues of town identity and representation.

▪ Where once they flew in such flocks that they threw shadows over the earth, they now survive in a few straggling colonies.

throw light on sth

▪ A comparison of the two will throw light on the crisis of conscience on both occasions.

▪ But I have not found anything in the careful judgment of Mustill L.J. which throws light on the issues presently under consideration.

▪ But my frantic, full-beamed Mayday signal only threw light on a de-iced porthole.

▪ Epidemiological studies sometimes threw light on preventable causes of cancer.

▪ Experiments to throw light on the processes at work must themselves be long-term.

▪ Geographical comparison of patterns of lawbreaking sometimes throws light on more general differences in social and economic conditions.

▪ It also seeks to throw light on the role assumed by planters and the planting lobby in society at large.

▪ Life-positions throw light on why it is that some people tend to be winners and some losers in life.

trip the light fantastic

▪ Among their routines as they trip the light fantastic at the Dolphin Centre in Darlington are the old time and modern dances.

turn the light out

▪ He turned the light out as the clergyman left the room.

▪ I take the car up as far as it will go, then turn the lights out.

▪ They turned the lights out and sat in fear.

▪ Would you mind turning the light out, Robert?

EXAMPLES FROM OTHER ENTRIES

▪ Light was coming into the room through a crack in the door.

▪ a gas lamp that gives as much light as a 100 watt bulb

▪ a sudden flash of blinding light

▪ In the fading light she could just make out the shape of a tractor.

▪ She sat reading by the light of the fire.

▪ That light's really bright.

▪ The light isn't good enough to take a photograph.

▪ The light was fading, and I was afraid we wouldn't be home before dark.

▪ The 5-inch model of the starship came complete with blinking lights.

▪ the cold blue light of the Arctic

▪ The valley was bathed in the soft light of dawn.

▪ We could see light coming from under the door.

EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS

▪ He switched on the light, opened the door, and went into the dim public space.

▪ He switched the light on and looked at the clock.

▪ Just then, the street lights come on.

▪ The blaze of lights in the evening was part of it, and the singing and shivering the rails made.

▪ The speed of light through our apparatus should vary as the speed of the relative ether current varies.

▪ This can be put in its least intuitively reasonable light if we assume just two firms.

▪ You will be aware that normally, of course, reflected light is of the same color as incident light.

II.adjective

COLLOCATIONS FROM CORPUS

■ NOUN

aircraft

▪ Read in studio Police have now named the three rugby fans who were killed when their light aircraft crashed into a field.

▪ In the light aircraft groups, there is a similarity of performance.

▪ Probably because of the very much greater stick forces and lower rates of pitch occurring in most light aircraft.

▪ All gliders and light aircraft have to recover satisfactorily with the standard method.

▪ Furthermore if Grimbergen is closed, where do the present 150 plus light aircraft presently based there go?

▪ Today, Cessna is out of the light aircraft market for ever and Piper is on its knees.

▪ This may well be one of those rare occasions when light aircraft pilots have the opportunity to shape something that affects them.

▪ Ivars has built over the years a series of light aircraft, most employing a faithful Cirrus Minor I engine.

entertainment

▪ In the seventies, it seemed that a light entertainment show on television was not complete without a clutch of catchphrases.

▪ But as message movies began to muscle out light entertainment, Reynolds became disposable.

▪ Moving the Nine O'clock News would free a peak slot to attract more viewers with dramas and light entertainment.

▪ Both videos are situations comedies made by a top television light entertainment director and an experienced cast of comedy actors.

▪ Music that could never be taken as light entertainment.

▪ The licencee must also pick a selection of other programme categories such as drama, light entertainment and sport.

▪ The video has been made using a highly-experienced cast of comedy actors and a top television light entertainment director.

industry

▪ Chester, in particular, is making loud noises about converting some of its greenbelt for housing and light industry.

▪ Out of this there soon came the normal development of light industry.

▪ These communities have an average population of between 200 and 700 and an economic base of agriculture plus some light industry.

▪ About 80 per-cent of farmworkers were women, he said, and over 90 percent of workers in light industry.

▪ Now it is a prosperous place, making its living from light industry and the visitors who come to tour the battlefields.

▪ Other engineering and light industries are filling many of the old mills and clothing factories.

▪ The metal and machine industries benefited most directly, while the stimulus spread to the textile and other light industries.

▪ They also have new light industries.

lunch

▪ No relaxing by the pool or light lunch over Football Focus for my lads.

▪ They were seated, as was their custom, in the summer-house, where they had just finished a light lunch.

▪ There is a smart àlacarte restaurant for dinner and light lunches are served in the bar.

▪ At the 52-storey building, the 1,000 staff are served light lunches and snacks by manager Tony Gatland and his staff.

▪ Vegetarian dishes and other special diets are no problem for Judy and snacks and light lunches will be provided on request.

▪ Why not fix to have a light lunch here one day if ever in Edinburgh.

▪ Dishy meals Whether you want inspiration for a light lunch or an impressive supper, we can provide it.

▪ Choice of ALaCarte Restaurant or the Pavilion Lounge which serves light lunches and traditional beers.

note

▪ Shame on you! she scolded herself, banking down the passion, trying for a lighter note.

▪ Keep all your meetings and get togethers on a light note by banning anyone talking shop.

rail

▪ This route has been earmarked for a possible future extension of the Midland Metro light rail transit system.

▪ Prescott said this could even include light rail or metro projects.

▪ Chiarelli sees light rail as an alternative to widening the busy Airport Parkway which parallels the route near South Keys.

▪ Thus, the comparative analysis of achievable stopping patterns by bus, light rail and suburban rail is well done.

railway

▪ We will encourage new schemes, using light railways and trams in cities.

▪ Kitsons' own designs for light railways, such as the Leek &038; Manifold in Staffordshire, were rugged and powerful.

▪ The only other opportunity in the foreseeable future is likely to be the new light railway in London's Docklands.

▪ If those words are retained in the legislation, those railways would still require a light railway order at some time.

▪ The company have retained the leisurely atmosphere of the turn-of-the-century light railway being situated off the major tourist circuits.

▪ Both produced passenger levels far greater than forecast and have encouraged more planning of urban light railways.

▪ Local authorities are demonstrating a growing interest in light railways as a cheap, energy-efficient transport solution in urban areas.

▪ Who knows, someday we might see the Minsterley and Shropshire-Montgomeryshire lines restored as light railways to solve Shrewbury's commuter problems!

rain

▪ A light rain began to fall.

▪ The clouds were turbulent and gray, a cool, light rain still falling.

▪ As he walked along, light rain began to fall.

▪ East Anglia: Patchy light rain.

▪ The prohibition was lifted in some counties last week after light rain fell over much of the state.

▪ Corbett trudged down the beaten, muddy track; the sky was overcast and a light rain began to fall.

▪ We had the window open, and it had just started to rain the lightest rain imaginable.

relief

▪ I have to be allowed a bit of light relief.

▪ The fighter pilot taking a little light relief.

▪ However, the Full Moon in Scorpio on May 16 should bring everyone to their senses and give some light relief.

▪ It seems that the staff were inclined to regard the women as light relief from the sombre business of teaching science.

▪ After this beginning some light relief must have been welcome.

▪ Her only light relief was Tony, who took her out every night.

▪ Then, for light relief, this page: murder and murder trials.

touch

▪ But it works, as do the disc brakes all round, positively and with a light touch.

▪ Some one had given his arm a light touch out of fear and respect.

▪ This performance needed more pace, a lighter touch throughout from the orchestra and much greater clarity from the first violins.

▪ There may be subjective numbness and slightly impaired pain and light touch sensation over the outer aspect of the foot. 3.

▪ A novel about novel-writing, which handles its tricky subject with a light touch.

▪ Does she love light touch or avoid it?

▪ It was in that kind of environment that the Takeover Panel started its life from small beginnings and with a light touch.

▪ The H-19 had hydraulic controls which required a light touch.

wind

▪ Conditions in Nidri or Porto Heli are ideal, with lighter winds and flat water.

▪ Clear skies and light winds helped cleanup crews Sunday.

▪ The wet grass glittered and near-by a nut-tree sparkled iridescent, winking and gleaming as its branches moved in the light wind.

▪ We are dead in the water, heading into a light wind and surface current.

▪ A Feeling 850 Club gives sporty sailing in a sensitive boat for up to 6; she's very fast in light winds.

▪ A light wind sprang up, and the smoke of their guns drifted over the valley towards the cemetery.

▪ We don't provide formal instruction, but novices pick up a lot by sailing out and back in light winds.

▪ There was a light wind and a wide sky.

work

▪ But she made light work of polishing off the shopping at a supermarket near her West London home.

▪ Mentally and physically handicapped do light work according to their capability, but get the same wages as everybody else.

▪ He sustained injuries to his back and was thereafter only able to undertake light work.

▪ Most of the work is manual, and buffaloes are used only for light work in the mud of the paddy-fields.

▪ The lighter work to which men tended to shift as they got older was generally worse paid.

▪ And the £170,000 military breakdown gear made light work of pulling the battered truck out of the waters.

▪ The Safrane made light work of the uncrowded road to the beer-producing town of Pilsen.

▪ Willie Thorne made light work of the promising Nottinghamshire youngster, Anthony Hamilton, as he eased into the last 16.

years

▪ But not your place, of course: we're a good four hundred light years from your usual stamping grounds.

▪ Only a few thousand light years.

▪ Those late 1940s now seem light years away from the customs prevailing in present day society.

▪ The political culture then was light years from the one today.

▪ You will be light years ahead.

▪ That will permit the search to reach out to 100 light years, covering about 300 stars.

▪ We shall be seeing that quantum effects can occur over distances of many metres, or even light years.

PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES

a ray of hope/light etc

▪ Amid the crushing disappointment of the general election there was a ray of light for the Conservatives.

▪ Besides, today there had been a ray of hope.

▪ But only when a ray of light attempts to pierce this darkness does the real, eerie action unroll.

▪ But the Red Or Dead catwalk show offered a ray of hope.

▪ Each time a ray of light passes through a lens it is slightly weakened.

▪ The Government's resignation is a victory, a ray of hope to take into the dark days ahead.

be all sweetness and light

▪ The negotiations were not all sweetness and light.

be bathed in light/sunshine etc

▪ He threw open a side door off the first-floor hall, and we were bathed in light.

big/light/fussy etc eater

▪ During the time she was living with the Abramses, Katelyn was happy and a big eater, Carter said.

▪ While never a big eater, he did tend to snack it through the day and night.

cast light on/onto sth

▪ The convergence of the techniques will cast light on perspectives and how they are controlled.

▪ The different ways in which superantigens activate T cells casts light on the pathogenesis of infectious disease.

▪ The incident has cast light on the creeping privatisation of the drug war.

▪ The investigation explores the possibility of using probate inventories to cast light on this and related questions.

▪ We use this to cast light on a metaphor of which we are given no other interpretation.

dim your headlights/lights

dip your headlights/lights

▪ He put his foot on the accelerator and dipped his headlights.

give sb/sth the green light

▪ The board just gave us the green light to begin research.

▪ Doctors gave him the green light yesterday to start against New Orleans on Sunday night.

▪ Everyone has given it the green light.

hide your light under a bushel

jump a light

light a fire under sb

▪ They had come in the night and lit a fire under the stage.