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Lucifer

1. The planet venus, when appearing as the morning star; applied in Isaiah by a metaphor to a king of Babylon. How art thou fallen from heaven, O lucifer, son of the morning ! how art thou cut down to the ground which didst weaken the nations ! (Is. Xiv. 12) Tertullian and Gregory the Great understood this passage of Isaiah in reference to the fall of Satan; in consequence of which the name lucifer has since been applied to, Satan. (Kitto)

2. Hence, Satan. How wretched Is that poor man that hangs on princes favors! . . . When he falls, he falls like lucifer, Never to hope again. (Shak)

3. A match made of a sliver of wood tipped with a combustible substance, and ignited by friction; called also lucifer match, and locofoco. See Locofoco.

4. (Science: zoology) a genus of free-swimming macruran crustacea, having a slender body and long appendages.

Origin: L, bringing light, the morning star, fr. Lux, lucis, light _ ferre to bring.