Dictionary

lightsaber en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• /ˈlaɪtˌseɪ.bə(ɹ)/ (Received-Pronunciation)
• /ˈlaɪtˌseɪ.bɚ/ (Canada, General-American)
• (Southern-England) audio

Etymology

From light + saber; coined by American filmmaker and philanthropist George Lucas for the Star Wars film franchise. First mentioned in the film Star Wars (later retitled Star Wars: Episode IV—A New Hope) which was released on May 25, 1977.

Meanings

1. A sword having a blade made of a powerful beam of light or energy.
   • Poster Power / Get the scheme behind the scene with Star Wars Blueprints: The Ultimate Collection. This boxed set includes five double-sided posters with blueprints of the Death Star, R2-D2, and C-3PO, lightsabers and blasters, Darth Vader and the Millennium Falcon. 2008 November, “Collecting”, in Boys' Life, volume XCVIII, number 11, Irving, Tx.: Boy Scouts of America, →ISSN, page 52:
   • Wielding his flashlight like a lightsaber, Kyle sent golden shafts slicing through the swirling vapors. 2004, Rob N. Hood, Beyond the Wind, Binghamton, N.Y.: Southern Tier Editions/Harrington Park Press, →ISBN, page 1:
   • [Obi-Wan Kenobi to Luke Skywalker] Your father's lightsaber. This is the weapon of a Jedi Knight. Not as clumsy or random as a blaster. An elegant weapon for a more civilized age. 1977 May 25, George Lucas, Star Wars, spoken by Obi-Wan Kenobi (Alec Guinness):
   • This was the era of Star Wars, the reinvention of science fiction with the homely Luke Skywalker. But even Luke had the Force and a tie-fighter. The Doctor was a humanist, and his spacecraft was an obsolete phone box redolent of bobbies with whistles. He would never resort to lightsabre against villains, preferring to confront them with jelly babies. 2006 September, Steve Tomkins, “Icon of the Month No. 82: Dr Who”, in Simon Jones, editor, Third Way, volume 29, number 7, Harrow, London: Third Way Trust, →ISSN, page 24:
2. A real-world toy, prop, or device fashioned after the fictional lightsaber.
   • The country’s fencing federation has officially recognised lightsaber duelling as a competitive sport, granting the weapon from George Lucas’s space saga the same status as the foil, epee and sabre, the traditional blades used at the Olympics. 2019 February 19, “Lightsaber duelling registered as official sport in France”, in The Guardian, archived from the original on 08 Nov 2020:

Forms

Translations (71)

bg лазерен меч (a fictional type of sword) · de Lichtschwert (a fictional type of sword) · fi valosapeli (a fictional type of sword) · gl sabre láser (a fictional type of sword) · hu lézerkard (a fictional type of sword) · el φωτόσπαθο (a fictional type of sword) · es sable láser (a fictional type of sword) · nv bééshdíín (a fictional type of sword) · ro sabie laser (a fictional type of sword) · vi kiếm ánh sáng (a fictional type of sword) · th ไลท์เซเบอร์ (a fictional type of sword) · cs světelný meč (a fictional type of sword) · th ดาบเลเซอร์ (a fictional type of sword) · no lyssabel (a fictional type of sword) · sh све̏тлоснӣ ма̏ч (a fictional type of sword) · fi valomiekka (a fictional type of sword) · ja 光の剣 (a fictional type of sword) · da lasersværd (a fictional type of sword) · sk svetelný meč (a fictional type of sword) · ca espasa de llum (a fictional type of sword) · gl espada de luz (a fictional type of sword) · de Laserschwert (a fictional type of sword) · th กระบี่แสง (a fictional type of sword) · nn lasersverd (a fictional type of sword) · sa रोचसः असि (a fictional type of sword) · sh svetlosna sȁblja (a fictional type of sword) · hu fénykard (a fictional type of sword) · ms pedang cahaya (a fictional type of sword) · ko 광검 (a fictional type of sword) · fr sabrolaser (a fictional type of sword) · fa شمشیر نوری (a fictional type of sword) · fo geislasvørð (a fictional type of sword) · ar سَيْف الضَّوْءِ (a fictional type of sword) · ko 라이트세이버 (a fictional type of sword) · la gladius lūcidus (a fictional type of sword) · yi ליכטשווערד (a fictional type of sword) · da lyssværd (a fictional type of sword) · ko 광선검 (a fictional type of sword) · ca sabre làser (a fictional type of sword) · it spada laser (a fictional type of sword) · pl miecz świetlny (a fictional type of sword) · sv lasersvärd (a fictional type of sword) · fi lasermiekka (a fictional type of sword) · sh svȅtlosnī mȁč (a fictional type of sword) · sv ljussvärd (a fictional type of sword) · ru светоша́шка (a fictional type of sword) · ru светово́й меч (a fictional type of sword) · eo lumglavo (a fictional type of sword) · uk світлови́й меч (a fictional type of sword) · tr ışın kılıcı (a fictional type of sword) · fi lasersapeli (a fictional type of sword) · et valgusmõõk (a fictional type of sword) · gl sabre de luz (a fictional type of sword) · is geislasverð (a fictional type of sword) · nb lasersverd (a fictional type of sword) · cmn 光劍 /光剑 (a fictional type of sword) · lv gaismas zobens (a fictional type of sword) · fr sabre-laser (a fictional type of sword) · es sable de luz (a fictional type of sword) · nl lichtsabel (a fictional type of sword) · sv ljussabel (a fictional type of sword) · es espada láser (a fictional type of sword) · nl lichtzwaard (a fictional type of sword) · he חֶרֶב אוֹר (a fictional type of sword) · es espada de luz (a fictional type of sword) · pt sabre de luz (a fictional type of sword) · fr sabre laser (a fictional type of sword) · yi ליכטסייבער (a fictional type of sword) · bg светлинен меч (a fictional type of sword) · ja ライトセーバー (a fictional type of sword) · sh светлосна са̏бља (a fictional type of sword)

wikipedia: Star Wars