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Lackluster may describe things that are dull, but the word itself is no yawn. In its earliest uses in the early 17th century, lackluster (also spelled lacklustre) usually described eyes that were dull or lacking in brightness, as in “a lackluster stare.” Later, it came to describe other things whose sheen had been removed; Charles Dickens, in his 1844 novel Martin Chuzzlewit, writes of the faded image of the dragon on the sign outside a village alehouse: “many a wintry storm of rain, snow, sleet, and hail, had changed his colour from a gaudy blue to a faint lack-lustre shade of grey.” These days lackluster is broadly used to describe anything blah, from a spiritless sensation to a humdrum hump day.
Examples of lackluster in a Sentence
Morgan Chittum, CNBC, 23 Jan. 2026
Naturally, the Night King ended up being a rather lackluster Big Bad in the end.
—Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 22 Jan. 2026
The attention around Sinners follows a surprisingly lackluster showing on the awards circuit.
—Okla Jones, Essence, 22 Jan. 2026
Persistent signs of deflation, trade tensions with the US, and flatlining growth appear to have pushed Chinese authorities to accelerate what had previously been lackluster efforts to do so.
—Tim McDonnell, semafor.com, 22 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for lackluster
Cite this Entry
“Lackluster.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lackluster. Accessed 31 Jan. 2026.
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lackluster
adjective
