“rays” is a form of
ray
/ɹeɪ/ noun, verb, proper noun
Forms rays raying rayed Rey Rai Rhay Rhey Shahr-e-Rey Shahr-e-Ray Shahr Rey Shahr Ray Chahr-e Ray Rhaga Rhagae Rhaganae Rhages
- noun A beam of light or radiation. “I saw a ray of light through the clouds.”
- noun (zoology) A rib-like reinforcement of bone or cartilage in a fish's fin.
- noun (zoology) One of the spheromeres of a radiate, especially one of the arms of a starfish or an ophiuran.
- noun (botany) A radiating part of a flower or plant; the marginal florets of a compound flower, such as an aster or a sunflower; one of the pedicels of an umbel or other circular flower cluster; radius.
- noun (obsolete) Sight; perception; vision; from an old theory of vision, that sight was something which proceeded from the eye to the object seen.
- noun (mathematics) A line extending indefinitely in one direction from a point.
- verb (transitive) To emit something as if in rays.
- verb (intransitive) To radiate as if in rays.
- verb (transitive) To expose to radiation.
- noun Any of the superorder Batoidea of marine fish with flat bodies, large wing-like fins, and whip-like tails.
- verb (obsolete) To arrange.
- verb (now rare) To dress, array (someone).
- verb (obsolete) To stain or soil; to defile.
- noun (obsolete) Array; order; arrangement; dress.
- noun The letter ⟨/⟩, one of two which represent the r sound in Pitman shorthand.
- proper noun A surname transferred from the nickname.
- proper noun A diminutive of the male given names Raymond, Rayane, and Rayan, also used as a formal given name.
- proper noun A diminutive of the female given name Rachel, more often spelled Rae.
- proper noun A census-designated place in Coosa County, Alabama.
- proper noun A ghost town in Pinal County, Arizona.
Synonyms
Arsacia beam beam of light light beam ray of light shaft shaft of light irradiation electron beam re radiate irradiate
Etymology
Via Middle English, borrowed from Old French rai, from Latin radius (“staff, stake, spoke”). Doublet of radius.
From Middle English raye, rayȝe, from Old French raie, from Latin raia, of uncertain origin. Compare Middle English reyhhe, reihe, reȝge (“ray, skate”), from Old English reohhe (“ray”).
Shortened from array.
From its sound, by analogy with the letters chay, jay, gay, kay, which it resembles graphically.
Webster’s 1913
- verb To array. [Obs.] Sir T. More.
- verb To mark, stain, or soil; to streak; to defile. [Obs.] "The fifth that did it ray." Spenser.
- noun Array; order; arrangement; dress. [Obs.]
- noun One of a number of lines or parts diverging from a common point or center, like the radii of a circle; as, a star of six rays.
Etymology [An aphetic form of array; cf. Beray.]
Etymology [OF. rai, F. rais, fr. L. radius a beam or ray, staff, rod, spoke of a wheel. Cf. Radius.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “ray”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details