Brilliant - Definitions from Dictionary.com

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Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

bril·liant

Audio Help [bril-yuh

nt] Pronunciation Key

–adjective

1.	shining brightly; sparkling; glittering; lustrous: the brilliant lights of the city.

2.	distinguished; illustrious: a brilliant performance by a young pianist.

3.	having or showing great intelligence, talent, quality, etc.: a brilliant technician.

4.	strong and clear in tone; vivid; bright: brilliant blues and greens; the brilliant sound of the trumpets.

5.	splendid or magnificent: a brilliant social event.

–noun

6.	Jewelry. a gem, esp. a diamond, having any of several varieties of the brilliant cut.

7.	Printing. a size of type about 3¹/₂ -point.

[Origin: 1675–85; < F brillant shining, prp. of briller < It brillare to glitter (perh. deriv. of an expressive root); see -ant

]

—Related forms

bril·liant·ly, adverb

bril·liant·ness, noun

—Synonyms 1. See bright.

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
Brilliant

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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

bril·liant Audio Help (brĭl'yənt) Pronunciation Key
adj.

Full of light; shining. See Synonyms at bright.
Relating to or being a hue that has a combination of high lightness and strong saturation.
Sharp and clear in tone.
Glorious; magnificent: the brilliant court life at Versailles.
Superb; wonderful: The soloist gave a brilliant performance.
Marked by unusual and impressive intellectual acuteness: a brilliant mind; a brilliant solution to the problem. See Synonyms at intelligent.

n. A precious gem, especially a diamond, finely cut in any of various forms with numerous facets.

[French brillant, present participle of briller, to shine, from Italian brillare, perhaps from brillo, beryl, from Latin bēryllus; see beryl.]

bril'liant·ly adv., bril'liant·ness n.

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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
brilliant

1681, from Fr. "sparkling, shining" prp. of briller "to shine," from It. brillare "sparkle, whirl," probably from V.L. *berillare, from berillus "beryl, precious stone," from L. beryllus. In reference to diamonds (1690) it means a flat-topped cut invented 17c. by Venetian cutter Vincenzo Peruzzi. Brilliance (1755) seems to be an Eng. formation.

WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This

brilliant
adjective
1.	of surpassing excellence; "a brilliant performance"; "a superb actor"
2.	having or marked by unusual and impressive intelligence; "some men dislike brainy women"; "a brilliant mind"; "a brilliant solution to the problem" [syn: brainy]
3.	characterized by grandeur; "the brilliant court life at Versailles"; "a glorious work of art"; "magnificent cathedrals"; "the splendid coronation ceremony"
4.	having striking color; "bright dress"; "brilliant tapestries"; "a bird with vivid plumage" [syn: bright]
5.	full of light; shining intensely; "a brilliant star"; "brilliant chandeliers"
6.	clear and sharp and ringing; "the bright sound of the trumpet section"; "the brilliant sound of the trumpets" [syn: bright]

Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
brilliant1 [ˈbriljənt] adjective

very bright
Example: the bird's brilliant feathers

Arabic:	لامِع، ساطِع
Chinese (Simplified):	鲜明的
Chinese (Traditional):	鮮明的
Czech:	oslnivý, třpytivý
Danish:	strålende
Dutch:	schitterend
Estonian:	särav
Finnish:	loistava
French:	éclatant
German:	glänzend
Greek:	αστραφτερός
Hungarian:	ragyogó
Icelandic:	ljómandi
Indonesian:	gemerlapan, cemerlang
Italian:	brillante, splendente

Japanese:	輝かしい
Korean:	눈부신
Latvian:	mirdzošs; spožs
Lithuanian:	spindintis
Norwegian:	strålende, funklende, skinnende
Polish:	błyszczący
Portuguese (Brazil):	brilhante, esplendoroso
Portuguese (Portugal):	brilhante
Romanian:	strălucitor
Russian:	блестящий
Slovak:	ligotavý
Slovenian:	lesketajoč se
Spanish:	brillante, luminoso
Swedish:	glänsande
Turkish:	parlak, pırıl pırıl

brilliant2 [ˈbriljənt] adjective

very clever
Example: a brilliant scholar

Arabic:	ذَكي، نابِه، نابِغ
Chinese (Simplified):	才华横溢的
Chinese (Traditional):	才華橫溢的
Czech:	vynikající
Danish:	fremragende; eminent
Dutch:	briljant
Estonian:	hiilgav
Finnish:	loistava
French:	brillant
German:	glänzend
Greek:	ευφυέστατος
Hungarian:	ragyogó, pompás
Icelandic:	afburðasnjall
Indonesian:	pandai sekali
Italian:	brillante

Japanese:	めざましい
Korean:	재기에 넘치는
Latvian:	lielisks; izcils
Lithuanian:	puikus, talentingas
Norwegian:	strålende intelligent, overlegent dyktig
Polish:	świetny, wybitny
Portuguese (Brazil):	brilhante
Portuguese (Portugal):	brilhante
Romanian:	strălucit
Russian:	выдающийся
Slovak:	vynikajúci
Slovenian:	blesteč
Spanish:	brillante, sobresaliente
Swedish:	högt begåvad
Turkish:	çok zeki

See also: brilliance

Free On-line Dictionary of Computing - Cite This Source - Share This

Brilliant
One of five pedagogical languages based on Markov algorithms, used in ["Nonpareil, a Machine Level Machine Independent Language for the Study of Semantics", B. Higman, ULICS Intl Report No ICSI 170, U London (1968)].
See also Diamond, Nonpareil, Pearl, Ruby.

U.S. Gazetteer - Cite This Source - Share This

Brilliant, AL (town, FIPS 9424) Location: 34.01672 N, 87.77581 W
Population (1990): 751 (366 housing units)
Area: 7.8 sq km (land), 0.0 sq km (water)
Zip code(s): 35548

Brilliant, OH (village, FIPS 8812) Location: 40.26850 N, 80.62490 W
Population (1990): 1672 (695 housing units)
Area: 2.5 sq km (land), 0.0 sq km (water)
Zip code(s): 43913

U.S. Gazetteer, U.S. Census Bureau

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Brilliant

Ber"yl\ (b[e^]r"[i^]l), n. [F. b['e]ryl, OF. beril, L. beryllus, Gr. bh`ryllos, prob. fr. Skr. vai[dsdot][=u]rya. Cf. Brilliant.] (Min.) A mineral of great hardness, and, when transparent, of much beauty. It occurs in hexagonal prisms, commonly of a green or bluish green color, but also yellow, pink, and white. It is a silicate of aluminium and glucinum (beryllium). The aquamarine is a transparent, sea-green variety used as a gem. The emerald is another variety highly prized in jewelry, and distinguished by its deep color, which is probably due to the presence of a little oxide of chromium.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Brilliant

Bi*zet"\, n. [Cf. Bezel.] The upper faceted portion of a brilliant-cut diamond, which projects from the setting and occupies the zone between the girdle and the table. See Brilliant, n.

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