lighting

American  

[lahy-ting] / ˈlaɪ tɪŋ /

noun

• lightings
  plural

1. the act of igniting or illuminating.

   the lighting of many candles; the annual lighting of the Christmas tree.

2. the arrangement of lights to achieve particular effects.

   to work out the lighting for one's living room.

3. an effect achieved by the arrangement of lights.

   Several critics praised the lighting of the play.

4. the science, theory, or method of achieving particular effects by the use of lights.

5. the way light falls upon a face, object, etc., especially in a picture.

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lighting British  

/ ˈlaɪtɪŋ /

noun

1. the act or quality of illumination or ignition

2. the apparatus for supplying artificial light effects to a stage, film, or television set

3. the distribution of light on an object or figure, as in painting, photography, etc

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• self-lighting
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• lightings
  plural

Etymology

Origin of lighting

First recorded before 1000; Middle English lightinge, Old English līhting; equivalent to light ¹ + -ing ¹

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

lighting lightings

“Because the disabled train had no working lighting or air conditioning, and its windows could not be opened, passengers were left with no ventilation for approximately an hour in extreme heat,” the complaint states.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 15, 2026

Ratel Robotics, which produced street lighting before the war, said it won orders for around 37% of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense budget for unmanned ground vehicles in the first four months of this year.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026

"By taking precautions you can protect your oil – lock and disguise your tank, fit a 'level Gauge' with audible alarm and consider installing security lighting and CCTV."

From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026

Not ironically, and not only in the nostalgic way one loves things that arrived alongside an adolescence spent under fluorescent lighting.

From Salon ● Sep. 8, 2026

Every year, once we’re done with Gram’s apple pie, we come and see the lighting ceremony.

From "How to Disappear Completely" by Ali Standish

In recent weeks, the 63-year-old leftist has been dancing on stage at rallies, calmly strolling trade expos and attending Christmas tree lightings hand-in-hand with his wife.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 30, 2025

“Let’s rededicate ourselves to add more light in honor of those murdered in Sydney. Let’s come out proudly to public menorah lightings, and make sure to kindle our own menorahs at home.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 14, 2025

But many of their sisters prefer the aggressive viewpoints and radical lightings of what was then called the New Vision, as developed at the Bauhaus and other hot spots of modern style.

From New York Times ● Jul. 11, 2021

Menorah lightings grew in prominence during the Clinton years.

From Salon ● Dec. 11, 2020

The period between two successive lightings up of the lunar lamp he found to be 42 hours, 28 minutes, and 35 seconds.

From Six Lectures on Light Delivered In The United States In 1872-1873 by John Tyndall