Sentence:  The image blurred into the <WSD>highlight</WSD>, like something familiar seen beneath disturbed though clear water; he looked at the familiar image with a kind of quiet horror and despair, at a face suddenly older in sin than he would ever be, a face more blurred than sweet, at eyes more secret than soft. 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  An area or a spot in a drawing, painting, or photograph that is strongly illuminated.