sidelight

[ sahyd-lahyt ]

/ ˈsaɪdˌlaɪt /

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noun

an item of incidental information.

either of two lights carried by a vessel under way at night, a red one on the port side and a green on the starboard.

light coming from the side.

a window or other aperture for light in the side of a building, ship, etc.

a window at the side of a door or another window.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of sidelight

First recorded in 1600–10; side¹ + light¹

Words nearby sidelight

sidehead, sidehill, side horse, side hustle, sidekick, sidelight, sideline, sideliner, sidelines, sideling, sideload

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use sidelight in a sentence

It’s also okay to have painted sidelights with a stained front door.
Curb appeal: How to pick the right color and style for your front door|Marissa Hermanson|October 7, 2021|Washington Post
By painting the transom and sidelights a light color — matching them to the trim color of the house — it accentuates the pattern.
Curb appeal: How to pick the right color and style for your front door|Marissa Hermanson|October 7, 2021|Washington Post
If your door is a stained wood and the sidelights are all stained wood, then that looks fine.
Curb appeal: How to pick the right color and style for your front door|Marissa Hermanson|October 7, 2021|Washington Post
A sidelight to the historic effort was the marathon reporting conducted by Mudd.
The media will be key to overcoming a Senate filibuster on voting rights|Donald Ritchie|April 12, 2021|Washington Post

A callous and utterly botched effort, but even if just a sidelight to this execution, it fits the execution like a favorite glove.
India’s Twisted Conscience on Terrorism|Dilip D’Souza|February 16, 2013|DAILY BEAST
As a(nother) sidelight, it's clear that Romney or whoever wrote this piece doesn't actually understand what culture even is.
Romney and Culture: Flip-Flop-Flip!|Michael Tomasky|August 1, 2012|DAILY BEAST
He tells me to carry on and, in doing so, throws an amusing sidelight upon himself.
Gallipoli Diary, Volume I|Ian Hamilton
Nothing was wrong but the loss of one sidelight, and the car went better than before.
Our Part in the Great War|Arthur Gleason
An interesting sidelight on the affair was received a few days later.
Camps and Trails in China|Roy Chapman Andrews and Yvette Borup Andrews
Morgan had never been so interesting as now that he himself was made plainer by the sidelight of these confidences.
The Pupil|Henry James
A glow-worm burned stilly, lighting up the whole leaf as a ship's sidelight lights up its painted box.
The Tower of Oblivion|Oliver Onions

British Dictionary definitions for sidelight

sidelight

/ (ˈsaɪdˌlaɪt) /

noun

light coming from the side

a side window

either of the two navigational running lights used by vessels at night, a red light on the port and a green on the starboard

British either of two small lights on the front of a motor vehicle, used to indicate the presence of the vehicle at night rather than to assist the driver

additional or incidental information

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012