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candle.

A light source consisting of a wick embedded in a solid, flammable substance such as wax, tallow, or paraffin.

6 characters2 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

noun/ˈkæn.dəl/[ˈcʰæn.dl̩]/ˈkeə̯n.dəl/[ˈcʰeən.dl̩]
  1. A light source consisting of a wick embedded in a solid, flammable substance such as wax, tallow, or paraffin.

    light a candle
    blow out the candles on the birthday cake
  2. The protruding, removable portion of a filter, particularly a water filter.

  3. A unit of luminous intensity, now replaced by the SI unit candela.

    obsolete
  4. A fast-growing, light-colored, upward-growing shoot on a pine tree in the spring. As growth slows in summer, the shoot darkens and is no longer conspicuous.

  5. Indicates how high or low church something is by height on the candle.

    idiomatic
    That vicar used to be an evangelical, but she's crept up the candle in recent years.
Where this word comes from

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *(s)kend-der. Proto-Italic *kandēō Latin candeō Proto-Indo-European *-lós Proto-Indo-European *-eh₁-lós Proto-Indo-European *-eh₁-léh₂ Proto-Italic *-ēlā Latin -ēla Latin candēlabor. Old English candel Middle English candel English candle From Middle English candel, from Old English candel (“candle”), borrowed from Latin candēla (“candle”), from Latin candeō (“be white, bright, shining”, verb); see candid. Doublet of candela and chandelle.

verb/ˈkæn.dəl/[ˈcʰæn.dl̩]/ˈkeə̯n.dəl/[ˈcʰeən.dl̩]
  1. To observe the growth of an embryo inside (an egg), using a bright light source.

    transitive
  2. To dry (greenware) prior to the firing cycle, setting the kiln at 200° Celsius until all water is removed from the greenware.

    transitive
  3. To check (an item, such as an envelope) by holding it between a light source and the eye.

    transitive
Where this word comes from

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *(s)kend-der. Proto-Italic *kandēō Latin candeō Proto-Indo-European *-lós Proto-Indo-European *-eh₁-lós Proto-Indo-European *-eh₁-léh₂ Proto-Italic *-ēlā Latin -ēla Latin candēlabor. Old English candel Middle English candel English candle From Middle English candel, from Old English candel (“candle”), borrowed from Latin candēla (“candle”), from Latin candeō (“be white, bright, shining”, verb); see candid. Doublet of candela and chandelle.

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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.