anchor light
- noun
- /ˈæŋkər laɪt/
- Specialized
:
luz de ancla
- Suddenly, among the firs, the boat with its tall mast and swinging anchor light was as unreal as a Christmas tree, and she was one of its shiny ornaments.
Examples
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The captain ensured the anchor light was on before leaving the ship for the night.
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As we approached the harbor, the anchor light signaled that the vessel was safely anchored.
-
In the twilight, the bright anchor light glowed, indicating that the ship was at rest.
Synonyms
A light on a ship that is anchored to make it visible at night
A lamp hung on a ship while it is at anchor to show its position at night
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase 'anchor light' is a literal, compositional combination of 'anchor' (mooring device) and 'light' (lamp), so a B1 learner who knows both words can infer it is a light associated with an anchored ship used to signal that it is at anchor. This noun+noun pattern denotes purpose/association rather than an idiomatic meaning and is cross-linguistically common, making the expression transparent.
Etymology
Anchor light comes from the simple idea of a light shown when a boat's anchor is down. When a boat shows this light at night, other boats can see it and know the boat is 'at anchor', not moving, so today the term means the warning light a boat shows while anchored.
