a proud, rebellious archangel, identified with Satan, who fell from heaven.
the planet Venus when appearing as the morning star.
(lowercase) friction match.
the leader of the rebellion of the angels: usually identified with Satan
the planet Venus when it rises as the morning star
before 1000; Middle English, Old English < Latin: morning star, literally, light-bringing, equivalent to lūci- (stem of lūx ) light + -fer -fer
How does lucifer compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Police said the assailant, 44-year-old Anthony Griffin, ignored repeated demands to drop the weapon and called himself Lucifer.
From BBC • Apr. 11, 2026
No wonder Dante, the Florence-born author of the “Divine Comedy,” consigned counterfeiters to the eighth circle of hell, “just one rung higher than Lucifer in the ninth.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 12, 2025
He had the word Lucifer tattooed on his chest.
From New York Times • May 24, 2023
Added bonus: the statuesque Gwendoline Christie as Lucifer.
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 4, 2022
And yet people have started to call him Scythe Lucifer.
From "Scythe" by Neal Shusterman
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
