alight

• enPR: ə-līt', IPA^(key): /əˈlaɪt/

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• Rhymes: -aɪt

From Middle English alighten, from Old English ālīhtan (“to lighten, relieve, alleviate, take off, take away, alight”) and Old English ġelīhtan (“to lighten, mitigate, assuage”), equivalent to a- +‎ light.

alight (third-person singular simple present alights, present participle alighting, simple past and past participle alighted)

1. (transitive) To make light or less heavy; lighten; alleviate.

From Middle English alighten, from Old English ālīhtan (“to alight, dismount”), from prefix ā- (compare with Gothic us-, German er-, originally meaning "out") + līhtan (“to alight”), and Old English ġelīhtan (“to alight, approach, come, come down, dismount”), equivalent to a- +‎ light (“to dismount”).

alight (third-person singular simple present alights, present participle alighting, simple past and past participle alighted or alit)

1. (intransitive, with from) To get off or exit a vehicle or animal; to descend; to dismount.

   He alighted from his horse.

   Passengers are alighting from the carriage.

2. (intransitive, with on or at) To descend and settle, lodge, rest, or stop.

   A flying bird alights on a tree.

   Snow alights on a roof.

   • 1886-88, Richard F. Burton, The Supplemental Nights to the Thousand Nights and a Night:

     Now when he had reached the King's capital wherein was Alaeddin, he alighted at one of the Kháns; and, when he had rested from the weariness of wayfare, he donned his dress and went down to wander about the streets, where he never passed a group without hearing them prate about the pavilion and its grandeur and vaunt the beauty of Alaeddin and his lovesomeness, his liberality and generosity, his fine manners and his good morals.

3. (intransitive, followed by upon) To find by accident; to come upon.
4. (intransitive) To befall or betide.
   • 1590, Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene, I.iii:

     His fearefull friends weare out the wofull night, / Ne dare to weepe, nor seeme to vnderstand / The heauie hap, which on them is alight, / Affraid, least to themselues the like mishappen might.

• unlight

From Middle English alighten, from Old English ālīhtan (“to light up, enlighten”), equivalent to a- +‎ light. Cognate with German erleuchten (“to light up, illuminate”).

alight (third-person singular simple present alights, present participle alighting, simple past and past participle alit or alighted)

1. (transitive) To light; light up; illuminate.
2. (transitive) To set light to; light.

From Middle English alight, from Old English *ālīhted, past participle of ālīhtan (“to alight”). See above.

• alighted

alight (not comparable)

1. Lit, on fire, switched on.

   The sticks were damp and wouldn't catch alight.

2. (figuratively) Lit; on fire, burning.

   Her face was alight with happiness.

Used only as a predicative.