lit
verb
a simple past tense and past participle of light.
Showing results for "lit"
- a variation of litas.
lit
1 American
[lit]
/ lɪt /
verb
adjective
-
Slang. under the influence of liquor or narcotics; intoxicated (usually followed byup ).
-
Slang. amazing; awesome; cool (used as a general term of approval).
Today's rally was really lit!
lit
2
American
[lit]
/ lɪt /
verb
lit
3
American
[lit]
/ lɪt /
noun
Informal.
lit
4
American
[lit]
/ lɪt /
noun
lit.
5
American
abbreviation
-
liter; liters.
-
literal.
-
literally.
-
literary.
-
literature.
Lit.
6
American
abbreviation
lit.
1
British
abbreviation
-
literal(ly)
-
literary
-
literature
lit
2
British
/ lɪt /
Etymology
Origin of lit1
First recorded in 1895–1900 in the sense “intoxicated”
Origin of lit3
First recorded in 1850–55; by shortening
Explanation
If something's lit, it's illuminated with light from a lamp or other source. Your romantic dinner table might be lit only with flickering candles. A well-lit room provides enough light for whatever task you need to to there — your kitchen might be lit with under-cabinet lights that shine on the counters, and your office might be lit with a desk lamp. Lit also means "set on fire," like a lit campfire or a glowing, lit stick of incense. If you're studying American literature in school, you might describe it using the colloquial shorthand, "American lit."
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:
All roads into Edenbridge will close at 18:00 GMT on Saturday in preparation for the event, which starts at 18:30 with a torch lit procession.
From BBC ● Nov. 4, 2026
“The government has never claimed that Jonathan lit a fire on Jan. 7,” he said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 4, 2026
The spark was lit in mid-September, when French high school students took to the streets to demand better and more facilities, and an end to an opaque university admissions system.
From Barron's ● Nov. 3, 2026
The host of amenities is jaw-dropping and includes a professionally lit baseball field, indoor pickleball and basketball courts, and a guesthouse.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 2, 2026
The glowing sky lit the room with a strange brilliance.
From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom
“This was like magic. Then he gets the light lit. I say this is poetic, but it’s true. It lit the rest of my career. I was locked into science, mostly electricity.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 31, 2024
"The reason for the recall of the vehicles is the SRS warning light on the instrument panel is lit. An internal malfunction of the airbag module is possible," Rosstandard said in a statement.
From Reuters ● Aug. 8, 2022
“I knew it was gonna be lit, but I didn’t know it was gonna be this lit. Woo hoo!”
From Seattle Times ● Jul. 31, 2021
"Holding onto anger is poison; forgiving is nectar. An angry grudge is like lighting a fire that destroys the place where it's lit. It burns your own heart first."
From Salon ● Jan. 3, 2021
‘And we’ll kill the fatted calf—you long-lost whatever-you-are. Come an hour after candles are lit. Prodigal Son, what? Got a cup, has he?’
From "Johnny Tremain" by Esther Hoskins Forbes
My English Lit. is a little rusty, but I seem to remember a couple of writers named Mary Wollstonecraft and Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley.
From New York Times ● Feb. 28, 2018
“But the Academy course only lasts a year, not six like in Psychology. I’ll have to see what I do afterward. Maybe Lit. But I’m planning to keep writing.”
From The New Yorker ● Mar. 10, 2016
“If the English Lit. department walked out, nobody would’ve done anything.”
From Salon ● Nov. 16, 2015
I baited them about this once in the Saturday Review of Lit., but perhaps if mentioned in a journal of slightly larger circulation they might correct it.
From Time Magazine Archive
Lit. ii. 102., another copy of it is given from a music book by Gibbons, 1612.
From Notes and Queries, Number 30, May 25, 1850 by Various
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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.
