friar's lantern

American  

noun

1. ignis fatuus.

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friar's lantern British  

noun

1. another name for will-o'-the-wisp

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Etymology

Origin of friar's lantern

First recorded in 1625–35

Example Sentences

Napoleon sometimes rode into this valley, and one day he turned to Betsy: "Mees Betsee, have you ever seen 'Will-o'-the-Wisp' that they say lights the friar's lantern?"

From Napoleon's Young Neighbor by Reed, Helen Leah

By friar's lantern = Jack o' Lantern or Will o' the Wisp.

From MacMillan's Reading Books Book V by Anonymous

In the same connection, Milton in "L'Allegro" also mentions the "friar's lantern."

From Stranger Than Fiction Being Tales from the Byways of Ghosts and Folk-lore by Lewes, Mary L.