Meaning & use
beam of light
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Meanings
nouncountable
A narrow stream of light travelling in a straight line from a source such as a torch, lamp or the sun through a gap.
Grammar: Countable: a beam of light, two beams of light; the plural is on beam, not light.
Patterns
- a beam of light from something
- a beam of light through something
A beam of light from the lighthouse swept across the dark water.
A single beam of light came through the crack in the curtains.
She pointed a beam of light at the ceiling to look for the leak.
nouncountablephysics
In physics, a stream of light rays or photons moving in a defined direction, as produced by a laser.
Grammar: Countable and often used in science lessons: the beam of light bends when it enters water.
Patterns
- a beam of light passes through something
- a beam of light is refracted
The students watched a beam of light bend as it entered the glass of water.
A laser produces a narrow beam of light that hardly spreads at all.
nouncountablefigurative
Something that brings hope or happiness into a dark or difficult situation.
Grammar: Used figuratively, often with in: a beam of light in a bleak week.
Patterns
- a beam of light in something
Her phone call was a beam of light in an otherwise miserable week.
The kind letter was a small beam of light during his long illness.
Word forms
| plural | beams of light |
|---|
Common combinations
- a narrow beam of light
- A narrow beam of light picked out the actor on stage.
- a beam of light shines
- A beam of light shone through the broken roof.
- direct a beam of light
- He directed a beam of light at the cave wall.
- a beam of light cuts through
- A beam of light cut through the fog.
- a beam of light pierces
- A beam of light pierced the thick smoke.
Synonyms and how they differ
- ray
- A ray is one thin line of light, such as a sun ray, whereas a beam of light is a thicker, directed bundle of such rays.
- shaft of light
- A shaft of light is usually sunlight falling through an opening and has a more poetic feel than a beam made by a device.
- spotlight
- A spotlight is a lamp or the circle of light it casts, not just the stream of light itself.
- streak of light
- A streak of light is a brief, fast mark of light, while a beam lasts and stays in a fixed direction.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: beam of light or ray of light?
beam of light vs ray of light
A ray is a single line of light, while a beam of light is a stronger bundle you can aim, so people say a ray of hope but a beam from a torch.
Practice
A single steady ______ came through the gap in the shutters and landed on the floor.
Choose one answer.
A beam of light is a narrow, steady stream of light, which fits light passing through a gap. A flash of lightning is sudden and brief, and smoke and heat do not fall on the floor as light does.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “beam of light”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.