1
a
: light coming or produced from the side
b
: incidental light or information
2
: the red light on the port bow or the green light on the starboard bow carried by ships underway at night
Examples of sidelight in a Sentence
The book includes some amusing sidelights about his childhood.
Recent Examples on the Web
The front door, defined by wide pilasters and sidelights topped by a crosshead with transom windows beckons visitors to step into an impressive and welcoming entry hall.
—
James Alexander, Hartford Courant, 1 June 2025
But the suspicions of his only daughter, Caroline, were little more than a sidelight of the trial.
—Catherine Porter, New York Times, 18 Mar. 2025
French doors to the deck have large sidelights that let in abundant natural light.
—James Alexander, Hartford Courant, 9 Mar. 2025
There’s a terrible host, and great movies like Life of Pi, Zero Dark Thirty, Amour, and Beasts of the Southern Wild are beaten out by Argo, a movie about a trivial sidelight to a geopolitical tragedy abetted by the United States for decades.
—Bill Wyman, Vulture, 28 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sidelight
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James Alexander, Hartford Courant, 1 June 2025
But the suspicions of his only daughter, Caroline, were little more than a sidelight of the trial.
—Catherine Porter, New York Times, 18 Mar. 2025
French doors to the deck have large sidelights that let in abundant natural light.
—James Alexander, Hartford Courant, 9 Mar. 2025
There’s a terrible host, and great movies like Life of Pi, Zero Dark Thirty, Amour, and Beasts of the Southern Wild are beaten out by Argo, a movie about a trivial sidelight to a geopolitical tragedy abetted by the United States for decades.
—Bill Wyman, Vulture, 28 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sidelight
Cite this Entry
“Sidelight.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sidelight. Accessed 3 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
sidelight
noun
side·light
-ˌlīt 
1
: light from the side
2
: incidental or extra information
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