as in lamps
something that provides illumination
the floodlit skyscraper is one of the city's most beloved nighttime beacons
Synonyms & Similar Words
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as in illumines
to supply with light
a lone lighthouse beacons the entrance to the island's only harbor
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of beacons
Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 3 Nov. 2025
Folks are having fun watching big, burly NFL players yell, grab at each other in fright and use the light from their cell phones as beacons in the dark.
—Lisa Gutierrez, Kansas City Star, 30 Oct. 2025
Scientists at Rice University have engineered living cells to light up like tiny beacons, revealing protein changes in real time.
—Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 24 Oct. 2025
In a sea of early-season upsets, somehow the two beacons of stability are a team with no receivers and a team that lost two players in pregame warmups.
—J.j. Bailey, New York Times, 19 Oct. 2025
An upcoming launch into near-Earth orbit will test the use of such visual cues — including islands and archipelagos — as navigational beacons.
—Robin Roenker, USA Today, 17 Oct. 2025
To ensure compliance, their technology digs deeper than basic IP address recognition to monitor the exact place someone tries to place a wager, sifting through real-time data from sources such as GPS coordinates, cell phone towers, WiFi access points and Bluetooth beacons.
—Dan Bernstein, Sportico.com, 16 Oct. 2025
Large rock-face murals scattered across the desert in northern Saudi Arabia represent one of the most ambitious – and perilous – creative feats of ancient humans, with researchers arguing that the massive carvings acted as visual beacons, guiding people toward crucial water sources.
—New Atlas, 30 Sep. 2025
Stars are the glittering beacons of the universe — massive nuclear furnaces that light up the night sky and shape the very fabric of galaxies.
—Kenna Hughes-Castleberry, Space.com, 28 Sep. 2025
Noun
Those beacons will pinpoint the exact location of the weapon, which generates fear.
—Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 3 Nov. 2025
Folks are having fun watching big, burly NFL players yell, grab at each other in fright and use the light from their cell phones as beacons in the dark.
—Lisa Gutierrez, Kansas City Star, 30 Oct. 2025
Scientists at Rice University have engineered living cells to light up like tiny beacons, revealing protein changes in real time.
—Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 24 Oct. 2025
In a sea of early-season upsets, somehow the two beacons of stability are a team with no receivers and a team that lost two players in pregame warmups.
—J.j. Bailey, New York Times, 19 Oct. 2025
An upcoming launch into near-Earth orbit will test the use of such visual cues — including islands and archipelagos — as navigational beacons.
—Robin Roenker, USA Today, 17 Oct. 2025
To ensure compliance, their technology digs deeper than basic IP address recognition to monitor the exact place someone tries to place a wager, sifting through real-time data from sources such as GPS coordinates, cell phone towers, WiFi access points and Bluetooth beacons.
—Dan Bernstein, Sportico.com, 16 Oct. 2025
Large rock-face murals scattered across the desert in northern Saudi Arabia represent one of the most ambitious – and perilous – creative feats of ancient humans, with researchers arguing that the massive carvings acted as visual beacons, guiding people toward crucial water sources.
—New Atlas, 30 Sep. 2025
Stars are the glittering beacons of the universe — massive nuclear furnaces that light up the night sky and shape the very fabric of galaxies.
—Kenna Hughes-Castleberry, Space.com, 28 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for beacons
Noun
-
Solar Power to the Amazonian People Many riverside communities throughout the Amazon basin lack access to electricity and often depend on polluting kerosene lamps and diesel generators for light and power.—
Jeff Young,
MSNBC Newsweek,
10 Nov. 2025
-
In this space, a light color palette that reflects sea and sky is incorporated in the furniture, porcelain lamps, drapes, and area rug.—
Leanne Potts,
Better Homes & Gardens,
9 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Like, the whole cockpit was lit up — lights, sirens.—
Lauryn Overhultz,
FOXNews.com,
7 Nov. 2025
-
Never use your high-beam lights.—
CA Weather Bot,
Sacbee.com,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
Amidst the planetary changes this week, a Supermoon illuminates the sky on November 5.—
Lisa Stardust,
Refinery29,
4 Nov. 2025
-
Some refrigerators have a cleaning button that illuminates to remind you.—
Brandee Gruener,
Southern Living,
3 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Brumbelow has found that cars with headlights rated highly by IIHS for visibility—which includes many but not all LED headlights—have 19% fewer nighttime crashes compared to cars with poor headlight visibility.—
Matt Fuchs,
Time,
4 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Beacons.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/beacons. Accessed 12 Nov. 2025.
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