red sprite

noun

An upper atmospheric optical phenomena associated with thunderstorms, a large but weak luminous flash that appears directly above an active thunderstorm system and is coincident with a powerful positive cloud-to-ground lightning strike.

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Meanings

nounred sprite (plural red sprites)

plural red sprites

  1. astronomyAn upper atmospheric optical phenomena associated with thunderstorms, a large but weak luminous flash that appears directly above an active thunderstorm system and is coincident with a powerful positive cloud-to-ground lightning strike.

    Red sprites flash high above thunderstorm clouds.

    1999, Patricia Barnes-Svarney, Thomas E. Svarney, Skies of fury: weather weirdness around the world, Simon and Schuster, page 99
Cite this entry
APA

red sprite. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/red%20sprite

MLA

“red sprite.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/red%20sprite. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “red sprite,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/red%20sprite.

Source: red sprite on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.