to step into the spotlight
1
5.1
- idiom
- Informal
:
salir a la luz
- Last week, she stepped into the spotlight as the new patron of the British Red Cross.
- stepped into the spotlight this year
Examples
-
Julia Roberts steps into the spotlight and talks about everything from power to privacy and romance.
-
Electronic amplification of an acoustic guitar allowed the big band guitarist to leave the traditional rhythm section-only role to step into the spotlight as a soloist.
Academic text (1998) -
Some of my clients have even stepped into the spotlight and made a real name for themselves, courtesy of Roy Thunder.
-
Shoulders are a major muscle group that every judge analyzes when you first step into the spotlight.
Blog text (4) -
Was this trial her chance to step into the spotlight, to grab for her fifteen minutes of fame, to force a nation's attention her way by being the lone holdout for an acquittal?
Fiction book (1997) -
Up until now, most of this law-breaking anarchy has taken place in the shadows, but now it's retailers' time to step into the spotlight, and shipping wine into states without the proper compliance is but the final leg of many illegal activities that take place in the wine business.
Blog text (30) -
John Hawkes stepped into the spotlight after his Oscar-nominated performance in 2010's Winter's Bone, a film that, admittedly, I've never been able to sit through.
Blog text (19) -
But this week, Chanel Miller is stepping into the spotlight with her own name and her own words in the new memoir, "Know My Name."
Synonyms
40
3.2
To get a lot of attention in the news
34
3.8
Go in front of an audience to perform or speak and be the main focus
26
3.4
To get attention by appearing in news reports
23
4.4
To quickly become very popular and liked by many people
14
3.7
To get the most attention or praise at an event
13
4.0
To make a person or thing noticed by people
11
3.9
Get a lot of attention in an exciting way
9
6.1
Become more noticed or important in a situation
5
7.7
Treat someone like a famous person by giving public attention and praise
Become the center of attention in public
To offer to take charge of a group or task
Antonyms
How Famous
- Informal
1
5.1
11
3.0
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly compositional: 'step' (move into) + 'into' (enter) + 'spotlight' (public attention) yields the sense of entering public attention. This motion-to-social-role metaphor is common in English and other languages, so a B1 learner who knows the constituent words would readily infer the meaning.
Etymology
The phrase step into the spotlight comes from the theatre: an actor literally steps into a bright spotlight on stage so the audience can see them and all eyes turn to that person. That's why it now means 'to become the center of public attention'.