lights

Meanings

1. 1nounplural

   lamps or other things that produce light, especially in a room or building

   Grammar: Plural noun; use with 'the' or a possessive: turn off the lights, her lights were on.

   Patterns

   • turn on the lights
   • turn off the lights
   • the lights are on

   Please turn off the lights before you leave the room.

   The lights in the kitchen were still on when I got home.

   She switched on the lights and looked around the empty office.

2. 2nounplural

   the set of colored signals that control traffic

   Grammar: Plural noun; often used with 'traffic' or 'at the lights'.

   Patterns

   • stop at the lights
   • traffic lights
   • wait for the lights to change

   Turn left at the lights and then go straight on.

   We waited at the lights for several minutes.

   The car went through the red lights.

3. 3nounplural

   the front and rear lamps of a vehicle

   Grammar: Plural noun; used with verbs like 'put on', 'switch on', 'dim'.

   Patterns

   • put the lights on
   • the car lights
   • dip the lights

   It was getting dark, so he put the car lights on.

   The rear lights were broken in the accident.

   Always check your lights before a long journey.

Word forms

Common combinations

turn on the lights

Could you turn on the lights? It's getting dark.

turn off the lights

Don't forget to turn off the lights when you go to bed.

traffic lights

The traffic lights were not working at the crossroads.

put the lights on

She put the lights on as soon as she entered the house.

Synonyms and how they differ

lamps

Lamps are the objects that give light, while 'lights' can also mean the light itself or traffic signals.

signals

Signals are more general, including sounds and gestures; 'lights' specifically means light signals.

Opposites

Word family

light noun

the brightness that lets us see things

light verb

to make something start to burn, or to give light to something

lighting noun

the equipment or arrangement of lights in a place

Commonly confused: lights or lites?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “lights”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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