sprite

noun

ˈsprīt 

plural sprites

1

a

: elf, fairy

b

: an elfish person

2

a

: a disembodied spirit : ghost

b

archaic : soul

3

: a form of electrical discharge that sometimes is emitted upwards from the top of a cumulonimbus cloud during a thunderstorm at the same time that lightning strikes downward and that usually appears as a red or reddish-orange flash of light

Atmospheric scientist Walter Lyons and his colleagues … noticed unusual behavior in storms over the plains: They triggered huge numbers of "sprites"—ghostly red glows of excited nitrogen molecules often seen high above violent storms.

—Robert Irion

4

: a bitmapped image or repeating loop of images that can move independently on a display often on top of a static background

Sprites are complex mathematically constructed models, sometimes simple (such as a computer cursor) and sometimes more complex, perhaps even humanoid in appearance.

—Stewart Fist

While the main character and enemy sprites in this … shooter are unusually large and detailed for the era, what really makes this game stand out are the highly detailed backgrounds that stand toe-to-toe with better-known NES games.

—Chris Freiberg

Gaming has grown from an eight-bit industry with sprites dancing across the cathode ray tube televisions of the '80s and '90s into a $180 billion global juggernaut with an audience that is larger than sports, movies and music combined.

—Andy Brownfield

Synonyms

• brownie
• dwarf
• elf
• faerie
• faery
• fairy
• fay
• gnome
• goblin
• gremlin
• hobgoblin
• kobold
• leprechaun
• pixie
• pixy
• puck
• troll

Examples of sprite in a Sentence

the child insisted that he'd seen a sprite hiding in the garden

told hair-raising stories of sprites and spectral ships

Recent Examples on the Web

As part of historic preservation efforts, the hotel is working to preserve the sprite statues, the website says. —Dalia Faheid, CNN, 4 Dec. 2024

According to the Arizona Biltmore website, the property has 19 sprite statues. —Stacey Barchenger, The Arizona Republic, 4 Dec. 2024

That means many of the sprites in games like Food Fight and Fatal Run end up looking like blocky riots of color when blown up to HD resolutions on the 7800+. —Ars Technica, 26 Nov. 2024

This is done in part by some masterful pixel-art graphics, which incorporate some wild 2D lighting effects and detailed, painterly sprite world. —Ars Technica, 22 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English sprit, from Anglo-French espriz, espirit spirit, sprite — more at spirit

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2b

Phrases Containing sprite

• water sprite

Kids Definition

sprite

noun

ˈsprīt 

: elf, fairy