alight 1 of 2

alight

2 of 2

verb

1
as in to perch
to come to rest after descending from the air a flock of eight swans circled above, then alighted on the pond

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

2
as in to descend
to come down from something (as a vehicle) as she alighted from the train, she momentarily lost her footing

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of alight
Adjective
Then Samsung’s massive screens at the SAP Center (home of the hockey team San Jose Sharks) were alight with a video of phone components snapping into place and, finally, the back and front clicking into place with punchy haste, to emphasize one aspect of the phone: its thinness. David Phelan, Forbes, 22 Jan. 2025 Hussain’s comments section was alight with feedback from Hartwell, as well as season 2 stars Kyle Abrams and Shayne Jansen, who were briefly engaged on the show to Shaina Hurley and Natalie Lee, respectively. Jami Ganz, New York Daily News, 2 Jan. 2025
Verb
The economic press, meanwhile, alighted on a more cold-blooded explanation for Trump’s return. Matthew Karp, Harper's Magazine, 2 Jan. 2025 Yesterday’s pangrams were alighting, annihilating, halting, hightailing and lathing. David Leonhardt, New York Times, 6 Jan. 2025 See All Example Sentences for alight
Recent Examples of Synonyms for alight
Adjective
  • Ben Johnson has a ‘burning desire’ to be a head coach.
    Brad Biggs, Chicago Tribune, 4 Feb. 2025
  • For answers to more burning questions about Season 2, plus Season 3 clues (including which Season 1 character will be coming back), read Deadline’s interview with The Night Agent showrunner Shawn Ryan.
    Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 24 Jan. 2025
Verb
  • Visiting the Vatican City masterpiece is not the same, Watts argues, as witnessing the artist perched on scaffolding in the act of creation.
    David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 16 Feb. 2025
  • Weedman Design Partners This home remodel by Weedman Design Partners was devised to embrace its natural surroundings, perched on a lake near the Oregon coast.
    Elizabeth Stamp, Architectural Digest, 10 Feb. 2025
Verb
  • Arctic air from Canada has descended on the Central and Eastern U.S., delivering record-breaking cold.
    German Lopez, New York Times, 19 Feb. 2025
  • The festivities continued well past midnight, with the newlyweds and their guests descending the mountain in jeeps under the stars.
    Lilah Ramzi, Vogue, 19 Feb. 2025
Adjective
  • Use fire itself, not as a flaming wood chipper, but as a transmuting presence to which much of the landscape may already be adapted, a process that can massage the biota, not just blast it away.
    Stephen A. Pyne, The Hollywood Reporter, 18 Jan. 2025
  • Flo Milli is closing out 2024 with yet another flaming hot freestyle.
    Amber Corrine, VIBE.com, 10 Dec. 2024
Verb
  • For Wolf to land in the 65th percentile, his GSAx would have to be closer to 5.3.
    Dom Luszczyszyn, The Athletic, 22 Feb. 2025
  • In August 2023, Barlow was a defense witness at a court hearing over the state’s effort to limit some records related to the FBI’s use in the case of an advanced DNA technique called investigative genetic genealogy, or IGG, which first landed on Kohberger as the suspect.
    Kevin Fixler, Idaho Statesman, 22 Feb. 2025
Verb
  • Considered one of the best bull riders of all time, Lane Frost was tragically killed in 1989 at the age of 25 after dismounting a bull at Cheyenne Frontier Days Rodeo.
    Marc Berman, Forbes, 11 Dec. 2024
  • The initial assaults over the weekend involved dismounted infantry walking in neat lines across snowy fields without much apparent support from artillery or aircraft.
    David Axe, Forbes, 18 Dec. 2024
Adjective
  • Come for Menzel — who is a blazing force — and stay for the incredible ensemble, earwormy score and inventive stage setting.
    Raven Brunner, People.com, 14 Feb. 2025
  • Yvette Martinez’s blazing car was found off Highway 198 between Coalinga and King City on Oct. 10, 2010, the Monterey County District Attorney’s Office said in a Feb. 5 news release.
    Daniella Segura, Sacramento Bee, 6 Feb. 2025
Verb
  • By that logic, try lighting a candle after spritzing the mist to layer home scents.
    Jenny Berg, Allure, 20 Feb. 2025
  • Heater Won't Ignite A gas heating system will typically have an electronic ignition that lights the pilot light, which in turn lights the main flame to generate heat.
    Timothy Dale, Better Homes & Gardens, 19 Feb. 2025

Browse Nearby Entries

Cite this Entry

“Alight.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/alight. Accessed 3 Mar. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on alight

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

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