crosslight

From cross +‎ light.

crosslight (usually uncountable, plural crosslights)

1. (uncountable) Light that comes from the side, causing shadows that can obscure objects of view or create strong contrasts.
   • 1880, John Torrey Morse (Jr.), Henry Cabot Lodge, Robert Percival Porter, The International Review - Volume 8, page 92:

     Each great party has felt itself in honor bound to justify its men and measures by elaborate argument, and so it has resulted that the light of science has been too often a crosslight, obscuring what it sought to illumine.

   • 1942, Minicam Photography - Volume 6, Issues 1-6, page 59:

     Use crosslight on the coat to show the warp and woof, and bring out texture.

   • 1992, Richard Ferncase, Basic Lighting Worktext for Film and Video, →ISBN, page 50:

     This positioning will create a crosslight that will leave half your subject in shadow.

   • 1964 September, Jim Yarnell, “Flying Photographer”, in Flying Magazine, volume 75, number 3, page 75:

     Such a crosslight emphasizes and defines the forms of trees, buildings, hills and valleys and produces a picture with strong contrasts of darkagainst-light.

2. (countable) A traffic light intended principally to allow pedestrian or other traffic from a lesser roadway to cross a busier roadway.
   • 1972, Descant: The Texas Christian University Literary Journal:

     When the crosslight turned green, silence was much less perilous.

3. (uncountable, theater) Illumination directed at the performers or subject matter from opposite sides of the set.
   • 1967, Jerry J. Lewis, An Approach to Lighting Design from Modern Dance, page 11:

     Again, the crosslight is best designed to angle slightly upstage taking care not to produce shadows on backings.

   • 2013, Francis Reid, Stage Lighting Handbook, →ISBN, page 154:

     Quick buffo comedy requires the clarity of the straight play, while sustained romantic anguish flourishes in atmospheric backlights and crosslight.

4. (uncountable) Light that results from multiple sources and different directions.
   • 1897, The Rural New-Yorker - Volume 56, page 186:

     In building a stable for horses only, where you can have light as you wish, I would say always have crosslight, so that the rays will cross as near where the horse stands as possible.

5. (uncountable, figurative) Multiple perspectives or points of view.
   • 1898, The Bee Keepers' Review - Volumes 11-12, page 91:

     There is sometimes an advantage, however, in getting a double light, or a crosslight, on a subject; or, in other words, in letting two men explain the same point.

   • 1996, Daniel W. Hardy, David Ford, Dennis L. Stamps, Essentials of Christian community: essays for Daniel W. Hardy, page 51:

     For my own part, I want to stand in the crosslight, to stand where all we can grasp of the world around us, scientifically, sociologically, culturally, can still be seen and spoken of with wonder and compassion.

6. (countable, figurative) One of differing points of view.
   • 1921, Lewis Ransome Freeman, Hell's Hatches, page 183:

     The incident of the palm was interesting in throwing an illuminative crosslight on the gentler human side of a man who had generally been rated as without either gentleness or humanity.

   • 1969, J.C. Furnas, The Americans: A Social History of the United States 1587-1914:

     In one crosslight all this bears a strong resemblance to Animal Farm, where, though all animals were equal, some were more equal than others.

crosslight (third-person singular simple present crosslights, present participle crosslighting, simple past and past participle crosslighted or crosslit)

1. (transitive) To illuminate from the side.