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jack-o'-lantern

[ jak-uh-lan-tern ]
/ ˈdʒæk əˌlæn tərn /
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noun
a hollowed pumpkin with openings cut to represent human eyes, nose, and mouth and in which a candle or other light may be placed, traditionally made for display at Halloween.
a commercially made lantern resembling this.
any phenomenon of light, as a corona discharge or an ignis fatuus.
a poisonous luminescent orange fungus, Omphalotus olearius, often found in clusters at the base of hardwood tree stumps.
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Origin of jack-o'-lantern

First recorded in 1655–65
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use jack-o'-lantern in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for jack-o'-lantern

jack-o'-lantern

noun
a lantern made from a hollowed pumpkin, which has holes cut in it to represent a human face
a will-o'-the-wisp or similar phenomenon
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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