Meaning & use

lighter

noun·Everyday

Last updated

A small handheld device that produces a flame, typically used to light cigarettes, candles, or fires.

See it in a sentence

He flicked the lighter twice before the flame finally caught.

She kept a spare lighter in her camping bag for emergencies.

A note on using this word

Lighter is also the comparative form of the adjective light, and separately refers to a flat-bottomed barge used to ferry cargo between ship and shore.

Another way to use it

2. noun

A flat-bottomed barge used to transfer cargo between a ship and the shore.

Workers loaded crates onto the lighter to ferry them to the docked freighter.

3. adjective

Less heavy; weighing less than something else (comparative of light).

This backpack is much lighter than my old one.

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “lighter”, then compare your use with the examples above.

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