💡 Ghostly light 🫧 Unreachable hope

will-o'-the-wisp

1 9.9

A pale flickering light that appears at night over marshes

noun
/ˈwɪloʊðəˌwɪsp/

Literature

: luz de gas

As I walked through the misty fields, I noticed a faint will-o'-the-wisp flickering in the distance.

Examples

You know, some say that will-o'-the-wisps lead you to your fate.

Brave (2012)
On a dark night, the will-o'-the-wisp danced over the marshes, mesmerizing those who dared to approach.
Legend has it that a will-o'-the-wisp can lure travelers off the path into treacherous bogs.

Synonyms

glimmer

vswill-o'-the-wisp

10 3.7

A small, weak light that appears briefly

is the specific pale wet-ground glow tied to folklore rather than any faint light

friar's lantern

vswill-o'-the-wisp

Archaic

9.9

A pale, flickering light that appears at night over marshy ground

is the same phenomenon but used as an older alternate name

ignis fatuus

vswill-o'-the-wisp

Archaic

9.9

A small, strange light that appears over wet ground and may lead people the wrong way

is the literal pale wet-ground glow rather than a misleading metaphor

marsh light

vswill-o'-the-wisp

Literature

9.9

A faint mysterious light that appears over wet ground at night

specifies a natural gas combustion cause for the same pale flickering glow

jack-o'-lantern

vswill-o'-the-wisp

Archaic

8.5

A pale light seen at night over wet ground in old stories

emphasizes a scientific gas combustion cause rather than spirit explanations

How Bright

beacon

66 4.3

lamp

274 1.0

candle

451 1.0

flicker

41 3.9

will-o'-the-wisp

Literature

1 9.9

glimmer

10 3.7

Surface Forms

will-o'-the-wisp singular

will-o'-the-wisps plural

Etymology

Will-o'-the-wisp comes from folk tales of a little light seen over wet ground; people called it a wisp ('bundle of straw' torch) and thought a will or wile made it a 'trick' or ghost. So a will-o'-the-wisp is a pale, flickering light that seems to lead travellers away.