slave of the lamp

Hello, you have come here looking for the meaning of the word slave of the lamp. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word slave of the lamp, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say slave of the lamp in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word slave of the lamp you have here. The definition of the word slave of the lamp will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition ofslave of the lamp, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.

English

Noun

slave of the lamp (plural slaves of the lamp)

  1. (fiction) A genie who is imprisoned in a lamp, as in the tale of Aladdin.
    • 1971, W. K. C. Guthrie, The Sophists, page 25:
      In the eyes of Gorgias "the word" was a despot who could do anything, but like a slave of the lamp it would be at the service of those who took his courses.
  2. (figuratively) A person who does, or is obliged to do, what they are bid; something that dutifully performs virtually any task.
    • 1866, John Cargill Brough, The Fairy Tales of Science, page 306:
      The miracles wrought by this slave of the lamp transcend all the wonders conceived by the oriental romancists.
  3. (humorous) A person who works by lamplight, or works with electrical apparatus.
    • 1887, Harriet W. Daly, Digging, Squatting, and Pioneering Life in the Northern Territory of South Australia, page 174:
      These "slaves of the lamp," as they used to be called, owing to the flash-light instrument upon which they sent the messages, had an equal number of hours on and off duty, and in their leisure hours spent their time in boating.
    • 2022, Albert V. Harmon, Large Fees and How to Get Them: A book for the private use of physicians:
      No more midnight oil — for why should he be a slave of the lamp? No more worry.