glorious

adjective

glo·​ri·​ous ˈglȯr-ē-əs 

1

a

: possessing or deserving glory : illustrious

had a long and glorious military career

b

: entitling one to glory

a glorious victory

2

: marked by great beauty or splendor : magnificent

a glorious sunset

3

: delightful, wonderful

had a glorious weekend

gloriously adverb

gloriousness noun

Synonyms

• magnificent
• epic
• majestic
• imposing
• proud
• massive
• grand

Choose the Right Synonym for glorious

splendid, resplendent, gorgeous, glorious, sublime, superb mean extraordinarily or transcendently impressive.

splendid implies outshining the usual or customary.

the wedding was a splendid occasion

resplendent suggests a glowing or blazing splendor.

resplendent in her jewelry

gorgeous implies a rich splendor especially in display of color.

a gorgeous red dress

glorious suggests radiance that heightens beauty or distinction.

a glorious sunset

sublime implies an exaltation or elevation almost beyond human comprehension.

a vision of sublime beauty

superb suggests an excellence reaching the highest conceivable degree.

her singing was superb

Examples of glorious in a Sentence

He had a long and glorious military career.

The old ruins give only a hint of the city's glorious past.

The government has described the battle as a glorious victory.

Our room had a glorious view of the mountains.

Recent Examples on the Web

On the surface, the glorious black-and-white concoction, which had its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival last May, tells the (mostly imagined) story of the making of Jean-Luc Godard’s epoch-defining 1960 movie, Breathless. —Tomris Laffly, Vogue, 23 Oct. 2025

The story's become one of most iconic tales of the 20th century, one filled to the brim with glorious weirdness, corruption, blood, lust and plenty of song and dance. —Audrey Gibbs, Nashville Tennessean, 23 Oct. 2025

The setting is Hedda and Tesman’s glorious English country house, sometime in the 1950s. —Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 22 Oct. 2025

The ballroom is going to be glorious. —Natalie Neysa Alund, USA Today, 22 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Anglo-French & Latin; Anglo-French glorios, from Latin gloriosus glorious, vainglorious, from gloria

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for glorious

• inglorious
• laborious
• notorious
• sartorius
• uproarious
• vainglorious
• victorious
• meritorious

Kids Definition

glorious

adjective

glo·​ri·​ous ˈglōr-ē-əs 

ˈglȯr-

1

a

: possessing or deserving glory : illustrious

b

: bringing glory

glorious victory

2

: having great beauty or splendor

a glorious sunset

3

: delightful

had a glorious day

gloriously adverb

gloriousness noun