5 February 2015
Moonlighting
is, sometimes, used to refer to the use of the moon, most often the full or nearly
full moon, for light. So, the term “moonlighting”
is used like “rear-lighting,” “indirect lighting” or “exterior lighting” to
describe the lighting effect from a particular source. Thus, if I change flat tire by nothing but
the light of the full moon, I relied on moonlighting for illumination during
the tire-change.
By far the
most common definition of moonlighting is the taking of a second job. Traditionally, one who worked a full time job
during the day would take a second job at night. Working that second job was said to be
“moonlighting.” Today, moonlighting
still refers to working a second job, but not necessarily at night. Working a full time job during the week and a
second part-time job on the weekend would be moonlighting.
Also, in
the United States, moonlighting is no disgrace.
But in the U.K., particularly older definitions of the term described
moonlighting as taking a second job under sinister circumstances. The moonlighter was a person who either
wasn’t supposed to be working a second job or was concealing his or her second
job from one who should know about it.
But, to my
surprise, there are a couple of other meanings of the word “moonlighting,” which
need a “short” answer of their own.
More next
week . . .
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