light up

phrasal verb

1

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.

2

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

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

3

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

Three-dimensional art sculptures and installations take over the space outside Orlando’s stadium while fireworks and pyrotechnics light up the night sky. —Patrick Connolly, The Orlando Sentinel, 27 June 2025

In one composite released Monday, bright pink clouds of gas and dust light up the Trifid and Lagoon nebulas, located several thousand light-years away from Earth. —Denise Chow, NBC news, 23 June 2025

Cole Anthony can light up a scoreboard at times, but he’s been inconsistent offensively and is nowhere close to the defender second-year guard Anthony Black is. —Josh Robbins, New York Times, 28 Apr. 2025

Not against this, an opponent able to lock down on defense, light up on offense. —Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 26 Apr. 2025

Rhymes for light up

• backup
• blowup
• breakup
• buildup
• checkup
• cleanup
• holdup
• hookup
• lineup
• lockup
• makeup
• markup