skylight

[skahy-lahyt]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR skylight ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

an opening in a roof or ceiling, fitted with glass, for admitting daylight.

the frame set with glass fitted to such an opening.

Meteorology. the diffuse light from the sky, scattered by air molecules, as distinguished from the direct radiation from the sun.

Origin of skylight

First recorded in 1670–80; sky + light¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for skylight

bay, aperture, bow, fenestella, oriel, jalousie, dormer, casement, fenestration, fanlight, fenestra, lunette, porthole, lancet, lucarne, mullioned

Examples from the Web for skylight

Contemporary Examples of skylight

He was not originally so uninhibited, however, as can now be seen in his “lost” novel, Skylight.
The Lost Novel of Nobel-Winner José Saramago
Charles Shafaieh
January 5, 2015

Historical Examples of skylight

I had an upper room prepared with a skylight and all other appliances.
The Atlantic Monthly, Vol. 10, No. 58, August, 1862
Various
Cal'late the whale had ventilators and a skylight in his main deck?
Mary-'Gusta
Joseph C. Lincoln
At that instant Drayton's eyes were riveted on the skylight with an affrighted stare.
A Son of Hagar
Sir Hall Caine
As she spoke, the first drops of a cold sleet rattled on the skylight.
Audrey Craven
May Sinclair
The lamp in the after skylight was kept burning through the night.
Chance
Joseph Conrad

British Dictionary definitions for skylight

skylight

noun

a window placed in a roof or ceiling to admit daylightAlso called: fanlight

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

Word Origin and History for skylight

1670s, "light from the sky," from sky (n.) + light (n.). Meaning "small opening in a roof to admit light" is recorded from 1680s. Related: Sky-lit.