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Glite Dictionary
😃 To look very happy 🎄 To shine with lights
to light up like a Christmas tree

to light up like a Christmas tree

1 6.8
Look suddenly very happy and excited
  • idiom
  • /laɪt ʌp laɪk ə ˈkrɪs·məs tri/
  • Informal
translation icon : iluminarse como un árbol de Navidad
  • Sister Evangeline lit up like a Christmas tree.

Examples

  • He is lit up like a Christmas tree.

    Alone in the Dark 2 (2008)

  • He lit up like a Christmas tree when he saw his birthday cake.

  • His eyes lit up like a Christmas tree!

    Blog text (32)

  • You will see somebody light up like a Christmas tree when you compliment their nails.

  • You will see somebody light up like a Christmas tree when you compliment their nails.

  • Her face lit up like a Christmas tree upon hearing the good news.

  • You can always tell when he is happy, as he lights up like a Christmas tree.

How Excited

to light up like a Christmas tree
  • Informal
1 6.8
to smile
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

light up like a Christmas tree infinitive
lighting up like a Christmas tree present participle
lights up like a Christmas tree third person singular
lit up like a Christmas tree past
lit up like a Christmas tree past participle

Morphology

light + up + like + a + Christmas + tree

The meaning is compositionally derived: 'light' + particle 'up' (to become illuminated) combined with the simile 'like a Christmas tree' (an object commonly decorated with many lights) makes the resulting sense directly predictable. Although it relies on cultural knowledge that Christmas trees are brightly lit, that association is widespread, so a B1 learner who knows the constituent words will generally understand the expression.

Etymology

Light up like a Christmas tree compares the sudden bright, excited look on someone's face to a Christmas tree covered in many small lights that glow. So, when a person suddenly looks very happy or excited, we say they 'light up like a Christmas tree'.