jack-o'-lantern
Americannoun
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jack-o'-lanterns
plural
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a hollowed pumpkin with openings cut to represent human eyes, nose, and mouth and in which a candle or other light may be placed, traditionally made for display at Halloween.
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a commercially made lantern resembling this.
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any phenomenon of light, as a corona discharge or an ignis fatuus.
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a poisonous luminescent orange fungus, Omphalotus olearius, often found in clusters at the base of hardwood tree stumps.
noun
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a lantern made from a hollowed pumpkin, which has holes cut in it to represent a human face
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a will-o'-the-wisp or similar phenomenon
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of jack-o'-lantern
First recorded in 1655–65
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The lawsuit focused primarily on Reese’s Peanut Butter Pumpkins, whose packaging depicts the seasonal candy with a carved jack-o’-lantern face.
From Salon ● Sep. 19, 2026
His trophy had a jack-o’-lantern on it because it was Halloween.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 16, 2023
These events are essentially like run-of-the-mill jack-o’-lantern carving festivities — contestants get pumpkins, carving tools and an hour to finish their masterpieces — except they happen entirely underwater.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 26, 2022
Rain falling on your jack-o’-lantern will invite every mold in the neighborhood to take up residency in or on it.
From Scientific American ● Oct. 19, 2022
Sayeh rose and hurried to my table to push the ugly old jack-o’-lantern away.
From "The World According to Humphrey" by Betty G. Birney
That farm grows pumpkins on 500 acres, mostly for decorations like jack-o’-lanterns.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 23, 2026
“My dad was always doing really outlandish jack-o’-lanterns, like, turning them upside down.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 27, 2023
Another long-standing local Halloween destination is the field of jack-o’-lanterns that lie in wait at the Whittier Narrows Recreation Area.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 18, 2023
I had gotten up early on that Saturday to hang orange streamers and balloons shaped like jack-o’-lanterns and black cats from my apartment walls.
From Washington Post ● Nov. 29, 2022
They’re sitting on the flatbed of Franklyn’s truck, illuminated eerily in the headlights like jack-o’-lanterns.
From "I'll Give You the Sun" by Jandy Nelson
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
