Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
lucifer

lucifer

9.9
A thin wooden match used to light candles or small fires
  • noun
  • /ˈluːsɪfər/
  • Archaic
translation icon : fósforo
  • To start the campfire, he struck a lucifer against the rough surface of the box.
  • light a lucifer

Examples

  • When it came time for me to take my bearings again, the gloom was so intense that I could not see the face of the compass or the brass dials of the musopticon, and had to light a lucifer match to be able to read them.

    Fiction book (1998)

  • In the dim light of the cabin, she lit a lucifer to find her way.

  • He carefully took a lucifer from the pack to ignite the birthday candles.

Synonyms

match
vslucifer
176 1.0

A small stick with a tip that catches fire when struck

is a specific old-fashioned type of this small fire starter ignited by friction
friction match
vslucifer
5.8

A small wooden stick with a tip that lights when you strike it on something rough

is an older form described as a thin stick ignited by friction
safety match
vslucifer
2.8

A thin wooden or cardboard stick that lights only when struck on the box's rough strip

is older and ignites by any friction, not restricted to special surfaces

Surface Forms

lucifer singular
lucifers plural

Etymology

Lucifer comes from the Latin word lucifer, which means 'light-bringer' and is made of luc- 'light' and fer 'to bring'. So a lucifer is literally a little 'light-bringer', an old name for a small match.