lighthouse

[lahyt-hous]

noun

plural

lighthouses 

1. a tower or other structure displaying or flashing a very bright light for the guidance of ships in avoiding dangerous areas, in following certain routes, etc.

2. either of two cylindrical metal towers placed forward on the forecastle of the main deck of a sailing ship, to house the port and starboard running lights.

lighthouse

/ ˈlaɪtˌhaʊs /

noun

1. a fixed structure in the form of a tower equipped with a light visible to mariners for warning them of obstructions, for marking harbour entrances, etc

Word History and Origins

Origin of lighthouse¹

First recorded in 1655–65; light ¹ + house

Example Sentences

That combination of locality and ritual — somewhere and nowhere at once — turns Cracker Barrel into a kind of cultural lighthouse.

From Salon

Some of the fables, such as “The Locket,” are told in multiple parts, its story of a humble sea trader and the allure and dangers of wealth spread among multiple displays and a lighthouse.

From Los Angeles Times

For as long as Hagen could remember, Pauley Pavilion was the lighthouse in the distance — the promised land of his childhood dreams.

From Los Angeles Times

Images posted on the elusive artist's Instagram depict a lighthouse stencilled on a drab, beige wall, along with the words: "I want to be what you saw in me".

From BBC

Canada regularly dispatches maintenance workers to Machias Seal Island to check on an automated lighthouse – evidence, they say, of their control.

From BBC

Related Words

• bulb 
• candle 
• daylight 
• flash 
• glare 
• glow 
• lamp 
• lantern 
• radiation 
• ray 
• star 
• sun 
• sunshine 
• window