footlight

[foo t-lahyt]

See more synonyms for footlight on Thesaurus.com

noun

Usually footlights. Theater. the lights at the front of a stage that are nearly on a level with the feet of the performers.
the footlights, the stage; acting profession.

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Origin of footlight

First recorded in 1830–40; foot + light¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

arena set theater scene spotlight room theatre cinema movie site amphitheater drama house hall auditorium playhouse troupe play farce show

Examples from the Web for footlights

Contemporary Examples

DS: Yes, and at Cambridge [University] I performed standup with the [well-known Cambridge amateur theatrical group] Footlights.
Dan Stevens Blows Up ‘Downton’: From Chubby-Cheeked Aristo to Lean, Mean American Psycho
Tim Teeman
September 19, 2014
Katie Holmes may often have seemed like a doe in the footlights during her marriage to Tom Cruise.
Why Katie Holmes May Win Custody
Nancy Hass
July 7, 2012
But that was the feeling you got from him, on either side of the footlights.
Doc Watson, a Legendary Picker, Was Traditional Music’s Best Ambassador
Malcolm Jones
May 30, 2012

Historical Examples

But when the footlights are on and the limes are lit, you'd be surprised to see how fine it looks.
The Foolish Lovers
St. John G. Ervine
Instead of screening him I had dragged him in front of the footlights.
It Happened in Egypt
C. N. Williamson
Bton in hand, he was bowing from his place before the footlights.
The Christian
Hall Caine
He noticed it and became abashed—he, the hero of a hundred footlights.
Melomaniacs
James Huneker
His face was in the sideway glare of the footlights which illumined the orchestra.
An Old Meerschaum
David Christie Murray

British Dictionary definitions for footlights

footlights

pl n theatre

lights set in a row along the front of the stage floor and shielded on the audience side
informal the acting profession; the stage

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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for footlights

n.

1836, from foot (of the stage) + light (n.).

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper