limelight
/ˈlaɪm.laɪt/ noun, verb
Forms limelights limelighting limelighted limelit
- noun The intense white light produced when heating lime in an oxyhydrogen flame.
- noun A type of stage lighting once used in theatres and music halls, producing a bright light by the use of incandescent quicklime.
- noun (by extension) Attention, notice, a starring or central role, present fame; spotlight. “steal the limelight”
- verb to illuminate with limelight
Synonyms
Etymology
From lime + light.
Webster’s 1913
- noun That part of the stage upon which the limelight as cast, usually where the most important action is progressing or where the leading player or players are placed and upon which the attention of the spectators is therefore concentrated. Hence, consspicuous position before the public; as, politicians who are never happy except in the limelight.
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “limelight”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details