lighter
noun · verb
Simple meaning
A substance used to ignite or kindle a fire.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
lyterSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈlaɪtɚ
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
A device used to light things, especially a reusable handheld device for creating fire to light cigarettes.
A substance used to ignite or kindle a fire
A person who lights things.
A flatbottom boat for carrying heavy loads (especially on canals)
verb
To transfer (cargo or passengers) to or from a ship by means of a lighter or other small vessel.
To transfer cargo or fuel from (a ship), lightening it to make its draft less or to make it easier to refloat.
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: A device used to light things, especially a reusable handheld device for creating fire to light cigarettes.
Used this way, lighter is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Nearby words
- igniter , rarer, so it draws attention
- ignitor , rarer, so it draws attention
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use lighter
- “Could you please hand me that lighter so I can light the candles?”
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.