searchlight

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Ms. Kuin looks for Diogenes not with a lamp but a searchlight, straining to see his influence everywhere—even in places it is very hard to detect.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 17, 2025

The methods used by exasperated zoo-keepers included trying to dazzle the bird with a fire brigade searchlight before nabbing him when he was distracted.

From BBC • Mar. 2, 2025

The task is a bit like discerning a field of fireflies around a central, massive searchlight.

From Science Daily • May 6, 2024

Using sound like a searchlight, they patrol the chilly depths.

From Seattle Times • Jul. 19, 2023

The searchlight shone directly at them for seconds that felt like minutes, but then it swung away and the engine noise changed as the steersman opened the throttle and moved off along the flood.

From "The Book of Dust: La Belle Sauvage" by Philip Pullman