a column of light (as from a beacon)
"The lighthouse keeper watched as a steady beam cut through the fog, guiding ships safely to harbor."
a branch of an umbel or an umbelliform inflorescence
"The botanist carefully counted the number of rays in each flower head to identify the species of daisy."
(mathematics) a straight line extending from a point
"In geometry class, we learned that every angle is formed by two rays sharing a common endpoint called the vertex."
a group of nearly parallel lines of electromagnetic radiation
"The physicist adjusted the spectrometer to isolate the ultraviolet ray that passed through the prism without scattering into other wavelengths."
any of the stiff bony spines in the fin of a fish
"The angler carefully removed the sharp ray from the tuna's dorsal fin before filleting it."
cartilaginous fishes having horizontally flattened bodies and enlarged winglike pectoral fins with gills on the underside; most swim by moving the pectoral fins
"The biologist pointed out a sunfish gliding through the coral, its large wing-like fins propelling it smoothly over the sandy ocean floor."
A beam of light or radiation.
"In some older texts, you might see a spelling variant like ray used instead of the word re at the beginning of a line."
A marine fish with a flat body, large wing-like fins, and a whip-like tail.
Array; order; arrangement; dress.
The letter ⟨/⟩, one of two which represent the r sound in Pitman shorthand.
Alternative form of re
In plain English: A ray is a beam of light that travels in a straight line from its source.
"The sun sent a bright ray through the window and warmed the floor."
To emit something as if in rays.
"The chef carefully rayed out the ingredients on the counter before starting to cook."
To arrange.
In plain English: To ray means to shine brightly with light.
"The sun began to ray warmly on the garden after the rain stopped."
Usage: Use this verb to describe light, heat, or energy spreading out from a source like the sun or a lamp. It is often paired with words such as radiate or shine rather than used for physical objects moving through space.
A surname, from nicknames.
"During our trip to Ray, we visited the ancient ruins of Persepolis just outside the city limits."
A city near Tehran, Iran.
The word ray entered English via Middle English and Old French from the Latin radius, which originally meant "staff," "stake," or "spoke." Although it shares a root with the medical term for a bone, this version evolved to describe a beam of light or a flatfish.