spotlight

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈspɒtˌlaɪt/ (UK); /ˈspɑtˌlaɪt/ (US)^[1]

Etymology

It is from English spot + light (both nouns).^[2][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

A source of artificial light casting a narrow, intense beam, also written spot-light: 1875, originally a piece of theatrical equipment, in Etymonline.^[2] Merriam-Webster dates it to 1904, the date of the OED's first quotation for an auxiliary lamp on a motor vehicle.^[3][4]

Semantic evolution

The figurative sense, the focus of public attention, is attested from 1916.^[2] The verb is attested by 1907 in Etymonline, and in the OED from 1923, to light with a spotlight and figuratively to draw attention to;^[2][4] a chiefly American sense, to hunt game by spotlight, is from 1934.^[4]

Timeline

• 1875 – a theatrical spotlight.^[2]
• 1904 – a lamp on a vehicle.^[4][3]
• 1907 – to spotlight.^[2]
• 1916 – the focus of attention.^[2]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. A strong beam of light that lights up a small area, especially a performer on a stage, or the lamp producing it.
2. The spotlight: public attention or prominence.

Verb

1. To light up with a spotlight.
2. To draw attention to; to highlight.

Word family

• spotlighter
• unspotlighted

Related words

• spot
• light
• limelight
• floodlight

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
3. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
4. ^ a b c d Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press