lamplighter

noun

lamp·​light·​er ˈlamp-ˌlī-tər How to pronounce lamplighter (audio)
: one that lights a lamp

Examples of lamplighter in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
When electric bulbs were introduced, the lamplighters kept their jobs because each streetlight had to be switched on individually. Jeremy Kahn, Fortune, 19 May 2024 But there’s reason to wonder whether his profession—like that of lamplighters, town criers, and cigarette girls—might be a thing of the past. Andrew O’Hagan, The New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2024 Minnesota put a scare in Dallas at the end of the period with a power-play lamplighter and another apparent goal 30 seconds later. Peter Warren, Dallas News, 8 Feb. 2023 The lighting of a 26-foot-tall menorah at downtown Detroit's Campus Martius Park will feature Motor City Cruise player Ryan Turell as lamplighter. Brendel Hightower, Detroit Free Press, 15 Dec. 2022 While at worship, the lamplighter came by and lit the candles in the chandeliers and in so doing set them swinging. Tribune News Service, Arkansas Online, 15 May 2021 Or maybe 2019 is the year Lin-Manuel Miranda achieves his EGOT (he's already won three Tonys, three Grammys and one Emmy) playing a charismatic lamplighter in Mary Poppins Returns. Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 8 Mar. 2018 Lin-Manuel Miranda, who plays a London lamplighter named Jack, also made the cut. Peggy Truong, Cosmopolitan, 5 Mar. 2018 Along with Blunt, Lin Manuel-Miranda stars as street lamplighter Jack. Tamara Fuentes, Harper's BAZAAR, 5 Mar. 2018

Word History

First Known Use

1750, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of lamplighter was in 1750

Dictionary Entries Near lamplighter

Cite this Entry

“Lamplighter.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lamplighter. Accessed 1 Dec. 2024.

Kids Definition

lamplighter

noun
lamp·​light·​er ˈlam-ˌplīt-ər How to pronounce lamplighter (audio)
: one that lights a lamp
especially : a person employed to light gas streetlights
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!