set alight
English
Verb
set alight (third-person singular simple present sets alight, present participle setting alight, simple past and past participle set alight) (transitive)
- To cause (something) to begin to burn.
- (figuratively) To arouse passion in (someone); to excite.
- 1860, Nathaniel Hawthorne, “The Burial Chant”, in The Marble Faun: Or, The Romance of Monte Beni. […], volume I, Boston, Mass.: Ticknor and Fields, →OCLC, page 227:
- Each chapel had its saintly shrine, hung around with offerings; its picture above the altar, although closely veiled, if by any painter of renown; and its hallowed tapers, burning continually, to set alight the devotion of the worshippers.
Synonyms
- (cause to begin to burn): fire, ignite, set on fire, set fire to, set ablaze, set afire, set aflame
- (arouse passionate feelings in): inflame, ignite, excite, rouse
Translations
to cause to begin to burn