light up

phrasal verb

of a light : to become lit : to begin shining

All of the lights on the display suddenly lit up.

—often used figuratively to express interest or pleasure

His eyes/face lit up when she walked in the room.

informal, of a telephone : to show a light indicating that someone is calling

When the DJ announced a contest, the phones lit up.

informal : to light a cigarette

I can't wait to light up after work.

Examples of light up in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Michael Marshall, left, of Paso Robles and Dalton Smith, center, of Templeton watch the sky light up with fireworks over Huntington Beach. —

Allen J. Schaben, Los Angeles Times, 5 July 2024 Macy’s is set to light up the New York City skyline this week for its annual Fourth of July fireworks display, and there are plenty of ways to watch from both near and far. —

Alison Fox, Travel + Leisure, 4 July 2024 Gru and his loyal yellow henchmen are preparing to light up the box office over the Fourth of July. —

Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 1 July 2024 Fireworks light up the sky above the lake at 9. General admission is free. —

Roger Naylor, The Arizona Republic, 26 June 2024 See all Example Sentences for light up

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'light up.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.