light speed

noun

: the speed of light
Accelerating particles to near light speed, such machines are ideal for smashing them to make exotic states of matter, blast out new particles, or even search for new dimensions of space.Adrian Cho
also, informal : an extremely fast rate or speed
A Netflix spokesman said it was adding titles at light speed while negotiating daily with studios, which have their own strategy for dealing with online distribution. Josh Quittner

Examples of light speed in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
This successor will be built in part from RHIC’s bones, especially from one of its two giant, subterranean storage rings that once held the retiring collider’s supply of circulating, near-light speed nuclei. Joseph Howlett, Scientific American, 6 Feb. 2026 This underground ring, 27 kilometers in circumference and straddling the border between France and Switzerland, was built to slam subatomic particles together at near light speed and test deep theories of the universe. IEEE Spectrum, 3 Feb. 2026 But not all of this ex-stellar material is destined to fall into the black hole; some is blasted away at near-light speed, while other material is blown away as black hole winds. Robert Lea, Space.com, 14 Jan. 2026 Electromagnetic emissions from flares travel at light speed and therefore reach Earth in around eight minutes. Literary Hub, 27 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for light speed

Word History

First Known Use

1914, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of light speed was in 1914

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Cite this Entry

“Light speed.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/light%20speed. Accessed 14 Feb. 2026.

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