Only when written 灯
General term for a light or lamp, often with a traditional or poetic feel. Not the most common everyday word for electric lights.
A small lamp was lit in the corner of the room.
baiting deer with a lighted torch
Only when written 照射
Specialized hunting term; refers to using a torch to lure deer at night. Almost always written as 照射 in this sense.
In the past, there was a method of hunting deer using a lighted torch.
ランプ is a loanword for a lamp, often oil or kerosene. 灯 can overlap but has a native Japanese feel.
light; lamp; torch
hanging lantern at a temple or shrine
Mycena lux-coeli; bioluminescent mushroom
Standard kanji for the general 'light/lamp' sense.
Specialized kanji for the deer-baiting sense; rarely used outside that context.
Derived from the verb ともす (to light). The kanji 灯 is used for its meaning 'lamp, light'. The reading ともし is the nominalized form.