Do balrogs have wings?

[Feanor of the Peredhil]

Hmm... The fabled Balrog/wing debate. Now for my own two-cents. I want you all to remember that this is partly my opinion and partly something I seem to have read or heard somewhere. I see to remember once hearing that things are more frightening when left to the imagination. If we were to actually know whether or not the Balrog had wings, it would take away our own impressions of its looks. Half-known or half-seen things tend to be more frightening than if you know precisely what something is. For instance, a nightmare. If you can fully remember every detail and you know exactly what happened and where, you can think back and say "That wasn't so bad." But if it is only partially remembered and the only thing that is foremost in your thoughts is how afraid you were, it makes it far more terrifying. In my opinion, Tolkien left the possibility of wings up to the imagination in hopes that fear of the unknown would enrich his own imagery. Just my own thoughts. Also- I'm not entirely sure that if the Balrog had wings, any of the Fellowship would have been able to tell for sure. If anyone else has been underground, in a cave or some such place, you'll remember that it darker than dark. Any idea of 'black' is refined after you experience pure darkness. You cannot see anything, and with the light coming from fire and Gandalf's staff alone, and firelight being very fickle, it would be impossible to tell if the very size of the being was just a trick of the light, much less precisely what its extremities were.