light bulb

noun

1. an electric light.

light bulb

noun

1. a glass bulb containing a gas, such as argon or nitrogen, at low pressure and enclosing a thin metal filament that emits light when an electric current is passed through it Sometimes shortened tobulb

Word History and Origins

Origin of light bulb¹

First recorded in 1880–85

Example Sentences

“I haven’t encountered any buyers who say the light bulb went off,” said the fifth publishing executive.

From Digiday

You likely interact with LED tech in some form multiple times per day, including the screen in your phone, light bulbs, and many other sources of illumination.

From Popular-Science

So ultimately just had this light bulb go off, thinking, okay, we know how to measure soft skills.

From MIT Technology Review

Once you explain what it is you’re doing and what the attack surface management tools will actually give you, that light bulb moment occurred very quickly.

From MIT Technology Review

It served as a light bulb moment for BDG, which prides itself on being on top of publishing trends.

From Digiday

One day, he took a monk with a cleanly shaven head and had him walk around a light bulb to demonstrate this theory.

From The Daily Beast

His bright idea turned out to be the incandescent light bulb, which he invented in 1880.

From The Daily Beast

Death waits for these things as a cement floor waits for a dropping light bulb.

From The Daily Beast

In 2007, the Bush administration signed a measure that would finally bring the light bulb into the 21st century.

From The Daily Beast

“There was no light bulb moment, it was just something I was drawn to,” Gomperts told The Daily Beast in Austin.

From The Daily Beast

Art without inspiration is our electric light bulb disconnected from the main current.

From Project Gutenberg

The vast misty cloud was plainly visible, glowing with a milky light like some vast frosted light bulb.

From Project Gutenberg

There was only one small light bulb hanging about forty feet up on the ceiling.

From Project Gutenberg

The floor was littered with papers, and a single electric light bulb relieved the gloom of the unsavory place.

From Project Gutenberg

They stopped under a broken sign of black letters on greyish glass, within which one feeble electric light bulb made a red glow.

From Project Gutenberg