numinous
adjective
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Numinous and Supernatural
When people of the 1600s were ruminating on an adjective to reflect their awe of the mystical and supernatural elements of their experiences, they gave the nod to numinous, and quite aptly so. Numinous comes from the Latin word numen, which can mean both “a nod of the head” and “divine will,” the latter sense suggesting a figurative divine nod indicating approval or command. (English users were already using the noun numen, a direct borrowing from Latin, to refer to a spiritual force or influence associated with a particular place or phenomenon.) Numinous is not a common or everyday word, which seems fitting for one used to describe what is far from quotidian, and instead part of the realm of the spiritual, the holy, or the transcendent.
Examples of numinous in a Sentence
Lev Grossman, The Atlantic, 23 Oct. 2025
Just a day later, on October 22, Neptune retrograde slips back into numinous Pisces, peeling away illusions while blurring the lines between fantasy and reality.
—Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 22 Sep. 2025
Nonbelievers might share this occasional sense of numinous exhilaration, even if their interpretations of the data diverge, Consolmagno acknowledged.
—Rebecca Mead, New Yorker, 28 July 2025
Starting with Neptune retrograde in Aries on July 4, this transit will likely create confusion in your love life as the numinous fog surrounds your romantic and creative endeavors.
—Valerie Mesa, People.com, 8 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for numinous
Cite this Entry
“Numinous.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/numinous. Accessed 31 Oct. 2025.
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