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candle

Pronunciation: /ˈkand(ə)l/
Translate candle | into French | into German | into Italian | into Spanish
Definition of candle

noun

  • 1a cylinder or block of wax or tallow with a central wick which is lit to produce light as it burns: the candle flickered in the cold night air an iced cake with nine lighted candles on it
  • 2 (also international candle) Physics a unit of luminous intensity, superseded by the candela.

verb

[with object]
  • (of a poultry breeder) test (an egg) for freshness or fertility by holding it to the light: the egg was candled—it was fertile

Phrases

be able to hold a candle to

[with negative] informal be nearly as good as:nobody in the final could hold a candle to her

the game's not worth the candle

the potential advantages to be gained from doing something do not justify the cost or trouble involved: she may decide the game’s not worth the candle and walk away from the discussions they may find that aggressive expansion is not worth the candle

Derivatives

candler

noun

Origin:

Old English candel, from Latin candela, from candere 'be white or glisten'

candle in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of candle in the US English dictionary

Nearby words

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