Spotlighter

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A person or thing that puts a particular subject in the public eye and draws close attention to it
2. Something or someone that brings focused notice to a matter, making it stand out from everything around it
3. A figure or device that highlights a certain topic or individual so that it becomes the center of attention

Etymology: "Spotlighter" is a plain formation: the noun "spotlight," which originally named the bright lamp used to pick out a performer on a stage, combined with the agent suffix "-er," meaning one who does the action. Put together, it denotes someone who draws the glare of attention, much as a stage lamp singles out an actor. The notable thing here is how literal the base is. "Spotlight" began as a physical stage fixture, a lamp with a focused beam, and only later came to mean the public attention such a beam represents. A "spotlighter" is therefore a person who works in the same way as that lamp, directing the eyes of an audience onto one figure.

Synonyms: spotlight