ray

¹

[rey]

noun

1. a narrow beam of light.

2. a gleam or slight manifestation.

   a ray of hope.

3. a raylike line or stretch of something.

4. light or radiance.

5. a line of sight.

6. Physics, Optics.

   1. any of the lines or streams in which light appears to radiate from a luminous body.

   2. the straight line normal to the wave front in the propagation of radiant energy.

   3. a stream of material particles all moving in the same straight line.

7. Mathematics.

   1. one of a system of straight lines emanating from a point.

   2. Also called half-line. the part of a straight line considered as originating at a point on the line and as extending in one direction from that point.

8. any of a system of parts radially arranged.

9. Zoology.

   1. one of the branches or arms of a starfish or other radiate animal.

   2. one of the bony or cartilaginous rods in the fin of a fish.

10. Botany.

    1. ray flower.

    2. one of the branches of an umbel.

    3. vascular ray.

    4. (in certain composite plants) the marginal part of the flower head.

11. Astronomy.,  one of many long, bright streaks radiating from some of the large lunar craters.

12. a prominent upright projection from the circlet of a crown or coronet, having a pointed or ornamented termination.

verb (used without object)

1. to emit rays.

2. to issue in rays.

verb (used with object)

1. to send forth in rays.

2. to throw rays upon; irradiate.

3. to subject to the action of rays, as in radiotherapy.

4. Informal.,  to make a radiograph of; x-ray.

5. to furnish with rays or radiating lines.

ray

²

[rey]

noun

1. any of numerous elasmobranch fishes, adapted for life on the sea bottom, having a flattened body and greatly enlarged pectoral fins with the gills on the undersides.

Ray

³

[rey, rahy]

noun

1. John, 1627?–1705, English naturalist.

2. Man 1890–1976, U.S. painter and photographer.

3. Satyajit 1921–92, Indian film director.

4. Cape, a promontory at the SW extremity of Newfoundland, Canada, on the Cabot Strait, at the entrance of the Gulf of St. Lawrence.

5. a male given name, form of Raymond.

6. Also Raye a female given name, form of Rachel.

ray

¹

/ reɪ /

noun

1. a narrow beam of light; gleam

2. a slight indication, esp of something anticipated or hoped for

   a ray of solace

3. maths a straight line extending from a point

4. a thin beam of electromagnetic radiation or particles

5. any of the bony or cartilaginous spines of the fin of a fish that form the support for the soft part of the fin

6. any of the arms or branches of a starfish or other radiate animal

7. astronomy any of a number of bright streaks that radiate from the youngest lunar craters, such as Tycho; they are composed of crater ejecta not yet darkened, and extend considerable distances

8. botany any strand of tissue that runs radially through the vascular tissue of some higher plants See medullary ray

verb

1. (of an object) to emit (light) in rays or (of light) to issue in the form of rays

2. (intr) (of lines, etc) to extend in rays or on radiating paths

3. (tr) to adorn (an ornament, etc) with rays or radiating lines

Ray

²

/ reɪ /

noun

1. a promontory in SW Newfoundland, Canada

Ray

³

/ reɪ /

noun

1. John . 1627–1705, English naturalist. He originated natural botanical classification and the division of flowering plants into monocotyledons and dicotyledons

2. Man , real name Emmanuel Rudnitsky . 1890–1976, US surrealist photographer

3. Satyajit (ˈsætjədʒɪt). 1921–92, Indian film director, noted for his Apu trilogy (1955–59)

ray

⁴

/ reɪ /

noun

1. any of various marine selachian fishes typically having a flattened body, greatly enlarged winglike pectoral fins, gills on the undersurface of the fins, and a long whiplike tail. They constitute the orders Torpediniformes ( electric rays ) and Rajiformes

ray

⁵

/ reɪ /

noun

1. music (in tonic sol-fa) the second degree of any major scale; supertonic

ray

1. A thin line or narrow beam of light or other radiation.

2. A geometric figure consisting of the part of a line that is on one side of a point on the line.

3. See ray flower

Other Word Forms

• raylike adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of ray¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English rai, raie, raye, from Old French rai “beam of light; spoke of a wheel,” from Latin radius radius

Origin of ray²

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English rai(e), raye, (from Old French rai ) or directly from Latin raia

Word History and Origins

Origin of ray¹

C14: from Old French rai , from Latin radius spoke, _radius

Origin of ray²

C14: from Old French raie , from Latin raia

Origin of ray³

C14: see _gamut

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. get / grab some rays, to relax in the sun, especially to sunbathe.

Synonym Study

See gleam.

Example Sentences

Julian initially struggled to hold on, leading members of the fishing party to believe he was fighting an area bat ray.

From Los Angeles Times

Yet amidst the challenges, new findings offer a surprising ray of hope - especially for mango lovers.

From BBC

“Are we doing retro-futurism? Are we doing the the cathode ray tube screens? Are we doing all of that stuff that in 1979 felt super futuristic, and to us now, feels like 1979?” he says.

From Los Angeles Times

Seconds later, a giant ray appears, shattering the tower and the celebratory mob.

From Los Angeles Times

With the party’s approval ratings at historic lows, that is one of the few rays of light Democrats can claim at the moment.

From Salon

Related Words

• glimmer 
• light 
• radiation