as in brightness
the quality or state of having or giving off light
the exceptional effulgence of the harvest moon is always a striking sight
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Recent Examples of effulgence
Though the Star of Bethlehem has sunk, yet its sacred effulgence beams forth periodically, again and again, and a universe is filled with joy in honor of the Great Redeemer.
—
Michael Barnes, Austin American-Statesman, 23 Dec. 2024
Maggie Rogers paired her of-the-moment shag with natural notes—bare skin, freckles, grass—as elsewhere, Elle Fanning enjoyed the lit effects of golden hour, which took her complexion and blanched blonde to new levels of effulgence.
—Calin Van Paris, Vogue, 10 July 2022
Absent from Van Noten’s three-decade career are stories of bankruptcy, strife, irresponsibility, overleverage, overexpansion, overspending or unhinged, dangerous effulgence.
—Hanya Yanagihara, New York Times, 16 Oct. 2017
Michael Barnes, Austin American-Statesman, 23 Dec. 2024
Maggie Rogers paired her of-the-moment shag with natural notes—bare skin, freckles, grass—as elsewhere, Elle Fanning enjoyed the lit effects of golden hour, which took her complexion and blanched blonde to new levels of effulgence.
—Calin Van Paris, Vogue, 10 July 2022
Absent from Van Noten’s three-decade career are stories of bankruptcy, strife, irresponsibility, overleverage, overexpansion, overspending or unhinged, dangerous effulgence.
—Hanya Yanagihara, New York Times, 16 Oct. 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for effulgence
Noun
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The meteors, known for their brightness and speed, travel at about 41 miles per second into Earth's atmosphere and can leave glowing trains, or incandescent bits of debris following the meteor, that last for several seconds to minutes.—
Diana Leyva,
Nashville Tennessean,
20 Oct. 2025
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Magnitude Magnitude is the scale used to measure the apparent brightness of objects in the night sky.—
Anthony Wood,
Space.com,
17 Oct. 2025
Noun
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So, astronomers have come up with a compromise regarding the geometry of the sun's illumination angle on Venus' disk versus its distance from Earth to determine the time of Venus' greatest brilliancy.—
Joe Rao,
Space.com,
4 Apr. 2025
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Family circles will have wrapped themselves in the holy pleasures of the great occasion, and everywhere the grand old holiday will have been introduced with all the majesty and brilliancy which clings around the hallowed name of Christmas.—
Michael Barnes,
Austin American-Statesman,
23 Dec. 2024
Noun
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After the game of a lifetime, few would have begrudged Guglielmo Vicario the chance to revel in his brilliance.—
Elias Burke,
New York Times,
23 Oct. 2025
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Sanders said of Ohtani's brilliance.—
Gabe Smallson,
MSNBC Newsweek,
22 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Yet in others, there’s the lightness of an untouched base.—
Grace Edquist,
Vogue,
23 Oct. 2025
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Hemmerle is known for its sculptural designs fused with technical ingenuity, often using unexpected metals—like copper, bronze, and aluminum—to achieve distinct tones and lightness.—
Jill Newman,
Robb Report,
20 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Effulgence.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/effulgence. Accessed 24 Oct. 2025.
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