switch-on
noun
the act or process of switching on an ignition, light, appliance, etc.
switch-on
American
[swich-on, -awn]
/ ˈswɪtʃˌɒn, -ˌɔn /
noun
switch on
British
verb
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to cause (a device) to operate by or as if by moving a switch, knob, or lever; turn on
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informal (tr) to produce (charm, tears, etc) suddenly or automatically
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informal (tr) (now slightly dated) to make up-to-date, esp regarding outlook, dress, etc
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slang (tr) to arouse emotionally or sexually
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slang (intr) to take or become intoxicated by drugs
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slang (tr) to introduce (someone) to drugs
switch on
Idioms
Etymology
Origin of switch-on
Noun use of verb phrase switch on
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:
And up until three years ago, she used to host a party for more than 80 guests on the evening of "Courtenay's switch-on".
From BBC ● Nov. 26, 2025
Starting from Goodison Park, at the junction of Spellow Lane and Goodison Road, the library lit up with a beam of light shooting into the sky in a symbolic switch-on, following live music performances..
From BBC ● Dec. 11, 2024
About 200 people are expected to attend a lights switch-on from 18:30 GMT in which the tree will glow with 1,000 lights.
From BBC ● Dec. 7, 2024
Councils have already cancelled weekend Christmas light switch-on events in Perth and Renfrew.
From BBC ● Nov. 22, 2024
The market's opening day coincided with the Belfast Christmas lights switch-on, with a number of roads in the city centre closed.
From BBC ● Nov. 16, 2024
Bass talked about her efforts to wean L.A. city completely off of coal-generated power, which it achieved in December 2025, and turning the switch on for one of the largest solar projects in the nation.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2026
The tools switch on for the new year the same season the guardrail comes off.
From Slate ● Aug. 21, 2026
These included NAMPT, IL6, IL1B and NLRP3, which usually switch on when the body is under stress.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 13, 2026
At Japan-based Takeda, scientists searched the company’s library of chemical compounds, looking for one that could switch on the orexin receptor.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
I flipped the switch on the wall and track lighting illuminated three columns of floor-to-ceiling bookshelves.
From "The Line Tender" by Kate Allen
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.
