luminous

adjective lu·mi·nous \ ˈlü-mə-nəs \

Definition of luminous

1 a :emitting or reflecting usually steady, suffused, or glowing light

luminous objects—the nebula. the stars, the planets
—Lincoln La Paz

b :of or relating to light or to luminous flux

2 :bathed in or exposed to steady light

luminous with sunlight

3 :clear, enlightening

a luminous explanation

4 :shining, illustrious

a luminous film star

a luminous performance

—

luminously

adverb

—

luminousness

noun

See luminous defined for English-language learners

See luminous defined for kids

Examples of luminous in a Sentence

I saw the cat's luminous eyes in my car's headlights.
a watch with a luminous dial
The room was luminous with sunlight.

Recent Examples of luminous from the Web

Startled west-side residents sighted luminous flying objects over the Naval Armory.

— dawn mitchell, Indianapolis Star, "RetroIndy: The alien invasion of 1952," 14 July 2017
Around midnight, the clouds evaporated, and Denali, luminous beneath a full moon, dominated the horizon 30 miles away.

— woody connette, charlotteobserver, "50 states, 49 years and 308,486+ feet: This Charlotte man has been to the top of every state. Here’s what he learned.," 14 July 2017
His gentle soul shines through his luminous pie plate of a face.

— stephanie zacharek, Time, "War for the Planet of the Apes," 13 July 2017
Despite raising a family, authoring three books, and retiring after what many would describe as a luminous career in health care, Mary felt incomplete.

— dean paton, The Christian Science Monitor, "Mary Matsuda Gruenewald graduates from her high school – 74 years later," 11 July 2017
In addition to Caesar, many old favorites from the other movies return, the loveliest among them the empathetic orangutan Maurice (Karin Konoval): His gentle soul shines through his luminous pie plate of a face.

— stephanie zacharek, Time, "War for the Planet of the Apes," 29 June 2017
Tokuda follows a lazy swarm of bright, luminous scout-flies, which pick up the monster's mucous-y scent.

— simon parkin, Ars Technica, "Monster Hunter: World promises “deep, meaty experience on console”," 26 June 2017
There's an insane diversity of settings from the classic rainy and luminous urban setting of L.A.—but also a new desert landscape, post-apocalyptic rubble, clubs, museums, casinos, vehicles, and more.

— matt miller, Esquire, "Here's One Thing We Absolutely Know About Blade Runner 2049," 22 June 2017
Secret weapon in general: Laura Mercier Candleglow Concealer and Highlighter pens for luminous brightness around eye area.

— sunhee grinnell, Vanities, "Hollywood-Cover Beauty Behind the Scenes: Hair, Nail, and Makeup Artists from A to Z," 19 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'luminous.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Did You Know?

Luminous, like its synonyms radiant, shining, glowing, and lustrous, is generally a positive adjective, especially when it describes something that doesn't literally glow, such as a face, a performance, or a poem. Luminous signs depend on a gas such as neon, krypton, argon, xenon, or radon—and you can use luminous (DayGlo) paint to make your own signs. New technologies have now given us luminous fabrics, which are being used to produce striking or creepy effects in clothing, upholstery, and interior surfaces.

Origin and Etymology of luminous

Middle English, from Latin luminosus, from lumin-, lumen

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 15th century

See Words from the same year

luminous Synonyms

Synonyms

beaming, bedazzling, brilliant, candescent, clear, dazzling, effulgent, fulgent, glowing, incandescent, lambent, lucent, lucid, bright, lustrous, radiant, refulgent, sheeny, shining, shiny, splendid

Antonyms

dim, dull, lackluster, unbright, unbrilliant

Near Antonyms

blackened, dark, darkened, darkish, darkling, darksome, dimmed, dusky, gloomy, lightless, murky, obscure, obscured, pitch-black, pitch-dark, somber (or sombre), sunless, tenebrous, unlit; cloudy, shadowlike, shadowy, shady; gray (also grey), leaden, pale, palish

Synonym Discussion of luminous

bright, brilliant, radiant, luminous, lustrous mean shining or glowing with light. bright implies emitting or reflecting a high degree of light. brilliant implies intense often sparkling brightness. radiant stresses the emission or seeming emission of rays of light. luminous implies emission of steady, suffused, glowing light by reflection or in surrounding darkness. lustrous stresses an even, rich light from a surface that reflects brightly without glittering.