luminous

[ loo-muh-nuhs ]
See synonyms for: luminousluminouslyluminousness on Thesaurus.com

adjective
  1. radiating or reflecting light; shining; bright.

  2. lighted up or illuminated; well-lighted: the luminous ballroom.

  1. brilliant intellectually; enlightened or enlightening, as a writer or a writer's works: a luminous concept; luminous prose.

  2. clear; readily intelligible: a concise, luminous report.

Origin of luminous

1
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English word from Latin word lūminōsus.See lumen, -ous

Other words for luminous

Opposites for luminous

Other words from luminous

  • lu·mi·nous·ly, adverb
  • lu·mi·nous·ness, noun
  • non·lu·mi·nous, adjective
  • non·lu·mi·nous·ly, adverb
  • non·lu·mi·nous·ness, noun
  • self-lu·mi·nous, adjective
  • sem·i·lu·mi·nous, adjective
  • sem·i·lu·mi·nous·ly, adverb
  • sem·i·lu·mi·nous·ness, noun
  • un·lu·mi·nous, adjective
  • un·lu·mi·nous·ly, adverb
  • un·lu·mi·nous·ness, noun

Words Nearby luminous

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use luminous in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for luminous

luminous

/ (ˈluːmɪnəs) /


adjective
  1. radiating or reflecting light; shining; glowing: luminous colours

  2. (not in technical use) exhibiting luminescence: luminous paint

  1. full of light; well-lit

  2. (of a physical quantity in photometry) evaluated according to the visual sensation produced in an observer rather than by absolute energy measurements: luminous flux; luminous intensity Compare radiant

  3. easily understood; lucid; clear

  4. enlightening or wise

Origin of luminous

1
C15: from Latin lūminōsus full of light, from lūmen light

Derived forms of luminous

  • luminously, adverb
  • luminousness, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012