gaslight
Syllables: gas·light/ˈɡæslaɪt//ˈɡæsˌlaɪt/
gaslight noun: a lamp which operates by burning piped illuminating gas (or town gas).
Noun
gaslight (countable and uncountable, plural gaslights)
- A lamp which operates by burning piped illuminating gas (or town gas).
- He was renovated and refreshed, his soul was strengthened, and his countenance waxed cheerful, and he began to feel like himself again, under the brown canopy of metropolitan smoke, and among the cabs and gaslights.[1871], J[oseph] Sheridan Le Fanu, “Captain Lake Looks in at Nightfall”, in Wylder’s Hand: […] (Select Library of Fiction; 178), new edition, London: Chapman and Hall, […], →OCLC, page 118
- Open the windows once in awhile^([sic]) and give the air a chance to circulate in and out. In the evening, do not forget that the lamps and gaslights are using up a goodly supply of oxygen also—so freshen things up a little, once in awhile.1904, Yogi Ramacharaka [pseudonym; William Walker Atkinson], “Fresh Air”, in Hatha Yoga: Or The Yogi Philosophy of Physical Well-being […], Chicago, Ill.: Yogi Publication Society […], →OCLC, page 222
- Synonyms:
- gas lamp
- The light produced by the burning gas in such a lamp.
- A year since I strained my eyes very severely, and have never dared to use them much since by gaslight.1887, Horatio Alger, Jr., “An Unexpected Engagement”, in Frank Fowler, the Cash Boy (The Alger Series for Boys), New York, N.Y.: A[lbert] L[evi] Burt, →OCLC, page 86
- Then as the darkness descended, they began to shine with the mellow radiance of gaslight.1953 April, Henry Maxwell, “Abandoned Railway Stations”, in Railway Magazine, page 270
Verb
gaslight (third-person singular simple present gaslights, present participle gaslighting, simple past and past participle gaslighted or gaslit)
- To manipulate someone such that they doubt their own memory, perceptions of reality, or sanity, typically for malevolent reasons.
- Sylvia is a beautiful woman whose business-partner husband is "gaslighting" her. (That means he's trying to drive her crazy.)1962, "The Journal Pre-Views Tonight's TV." Jersey Journal [Jersey City, NJ]. February 12, 1962: 12 col 6, describing the plot of the episode "Who Is Sylvia" of the television show Surfside 6
- [The men of McHale's Navy] decide to "gaslight" the already befuddled captain, to convince him he is going insane.1963, "TV Scout." Daily Press [Utica, NY]. November 18, 1963: 24 col 2, describing the plot of the episode "The August Teahouse of Quint McHale" of McHale's Navy
- Synonyms:
- head-game
- To deceive, trick, or lie to.
gaslight meaning in Tamil, Tagalog and Arabic
gaslight in Tamil
- ஆவி விளக்கு, வளிம விளக்கு
gaslight in Tagalog
- lamp which burns piped illuminating gas
- gasera, lasigi
gaslight in Arabic
- lamp which burns piped illuminating gas
- مِصْبَاح غَاز miṣbāḥ ḡāz
Examples of gaslight in a sentence
- "You're gaslighting me, for chrissakes."1964, in an argument between the characters Jenny and Charley in William Goldman's novel Boys and Girls Together, page 564
- Just in the nick of time Rachel finds out the truth about her life from Martha. … This is how I wanted to show the gaslighting that had been going on Rachel's entire life.2016, Tate Taylor (movie director), in the commentary version of The Girl on the Train (2016 film), discussing a train scene seventy-six...
- In fact, political scholars have written a great deal about Trump's gaslighting of the American people on various fronts.2021 September 28, Alexander Brown, An Ethics of Political Communication, Routledge, →ISBN:
- It brags “we can replace them”—and gaslights and demonizes those who notice and object to being replaced.2023 July 21, Michael Anton, “The Pessimistic Case for the Future”, in Compact, archived from the original on 26 Mar 2024:
Synonyms of gaslight
Forms of gaslight
| Noun | |
|---|---|
| plural | gaslights |
| alternative form | gas light |
| alternative form | gas-light |
| Verb | |
| third-person singular present | gaslights |
| present participle | gaslighting |
| past participle | gaslighted |
| past | gaslighted |
| past participle | gaslit |
| past | gaslit |
Origin of gaslight
From gas (“flammable gaseous hydrocarbon or hydrocarbon mixture used as a fuel”) + light.
From the 1938 stage play Gas Light by the English playwright and novelist Patrick Hamilton (1904–1962), and its 1940 and 1944 film adaptations, in which a husband attempts to convince his wife and others that she is insane by manipulating small elements of their environment. For more details, see also Gaslighting § Etymology on Wikipedia.
Words formed from gaslight
Phrases with gaslight
Questions about gaslight
- What does gaslight mean?
- Gaslight means a lamp which operates by burning piped illuminating gas (or town gas).
- What is gaslight in Tamil?
- Gaslight in Tamil is ஆவி விளக்கு, வளிம விளக்கு. See Gaslight meaning in Tamil.
- How do you use gaslight in a sentence?
- "You're gaslighting me, for chrissakes."
- What part of speech is gaslight?
- Gaslight can be a noun or a verb.
- How do you pronounce gaslight?
- Gaslight is pronounced /ˈɡæslaɪt/ (UK).
- What is the plural of gaslight?
- The plural of gaslight is gaslights.
Words near gaslight in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: gaslight (page history and authors); gaslight (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-I learned some phrases-gaslight.wav, en-us-gaslight.mp3.
Cite this entry: “gaslight.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/gaslight. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.