lamp

American  

[lamp] / læmp /

noun

lamps plural

1. any of various devices furnishing artificial light, as by electricity or gas.

2. a container for an inflammable liquid, as oil, which is burned at a wick as a means of illumination.

3. a source of intellectual or spiritual light.

   the lamp of learning.

4. any of various devices furnishing heat, ultraviolet, or other radiation.

   an infrared lamp.

5. a celestial body that gives off light, as the moon or a star.

6. a torch.

7. Slang. lamps, the eyes.

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verb (used with object)

1. Slang. to look at; eye.

idioms

1. smell of the lamp, to give evidence of laborious study or effort.

   His dissertation smells of the lamp.

lamp British  

/ læmp /

noun

1. 1. any of a number of devices that produce illumination

      an electric lamp

      a gas lamp

      an oil lamp

   2. ( in combination )

      lampshade

2. a device for holding one or more electric light bulbs

   a table lamp

3. a vessel in which a liquid fuel is burned to supply illumination

4. any of a variety of devices that produce radiation, esp for therapeutic purposes

   an ultraviolet lamp

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• lampless
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• lamps
  plural

Etymology

Origin of lamp

1150–1200; Middle English lampe < Old French < Late Latin lampada, for Latin lampas (stem lampad- ) < Greek lampás lamp; akin to lámpē torch, lamp, lámpein to shine

Explanation

A lamp is a small appliance that holds an electric bulb and produces light. Your desk lamp might provide enough light for you to read by at night, or you may have to turn on a floor lamp too after the sun goes down. Today, most lamps use electricity and a light bulb to shine the light that we all need to work and live comfortably after daylight fades. There are also older-style oil lamps and gas lamps, which are more typically described as lanterns. The Greek root of lamp is lampas, "torch or beacon" and also "meteor," from lampein, "to shine."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

lamp lamps

When researchers positioned a white lamp so that its beam shone straight down, the isopods repeatedly gathered into large rotating circles.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 6, 2026

Crews have repaved streets in downtown Washington and repainted lamp posts.

From BBC ● Jun. 1, 2026

It’s got a purple corded phone, a lava lamp, a beanbag chair … and it happens to be a habitat at a zoo on a planet of bug people.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 3, 2026

In 1960, Theodore Maiman demonstrated the first working laser using a synthetic ruby rod and a photographer’s flash lamp.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 24, 2026

Lily twirls with her arms extended like airplane wings, nearly knocking over a floor lamp.

From "South of Somewhere" by Kalena Miller

The pattern persisted until artificial light changed the economics of the night: gas lamps began lighting London's streets in 1807, people stayed up later, the gap between the two sleeps narrowed and eventually closed.

From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2026

Ghaffar’s team said they are very happy with the result to date, adding that the arbitrator had sided with Ghaffar on other matters, ranging from a dispute over Louis Vuitton lamps to certain real-estate transactions.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 17, 2026

Patni commemorated Akash with a framed photograph and a life-size cutout, decorated with flowers and surrounded by scattered rose petals and lit lamps.

From Barron's ● Jun. 12, 2026

Capybara merch is wildly popular in the zoo’s gift shops, which sell 25,000 capybara-themed items a year: almost 7,000 plush toys, plus keychains, backpacks, cups, caps, bottles, slippers, and lamps.

From Slate ● May 27, 2026

One desk had an old-fashioned-looking phone, the kind he’d only ever seen in movies, and lamps with thick green glass.

From "The Way to Rio Luna" by Zoraida Cordova

Related Words

• flashlight
• light