luminaries

noun

plural of luminary
1
as in stars
a ball-shaped gaseous celestial body that shines by its own light awed by the vast number of luminaries in the night sky

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in celebrities
a person who is widely known and usually much talked about luminaries from the worlds of sports, entertainment, and politics were at the gala

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of luminaries While mingling among guests at the cocktail hour, Mamdani, who did indeed put on a tux for the occasion, posed for photos with First Lady Rama Duwaji and luminaries, such as collector Bernard Lumpkin and the artist Rashid Johnson. — Nate Freeman, Vanity Fair, 30 Oct. 2026 With the passing of Walter Koenig at the age of 90 this past week, franchise luminaries of all degrees are coming out with heartfelt condolences, kind words of remembrance, and tearful reflections. — Jeff Spry, Space.com, 30 Oct. 2026 There are some luminaries as well, but you’re never really told who’s speaking on the soundtrack. — Nina Metz, Chicago Tribune, 28 Oct. 2026 Meet our expert editors in person and get up close to the action with live cooking demos, hands-on classes, and panel conversations with culinary world luminaries. — The Bon Appétit Staff, Bon Appetit Magazine, 28 Oct. 2026 Politicians, film-industry luminaries, and even the royal family that owns the fort, have been known to drop by for a night. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 24 Oct. 2026 Nominated for five Critics Choice Documentary Awards, the film compiles footage William Greaves shot in 1972 of a gathering of Harlem Renaissance luminaries at Duke Ellington’s townhouse. — Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 22 Oct. 2026 In 1972, William Greaves brought together an extraordinary gathering of surviving artists, writers, and cultural luminaries of the Harlem Renaissance at Duke Ellington’s townhouse for an afternoon of debate, reflection, laughter, and exchange. — Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 22 Oct. 2026 His art often featured jazz luminaries, boxers, and other figures along with graffiti-like words. — Kory Grow, Rolling Stone, 21 Oct. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for luminaries
  1. stars
  2. celebrities
  3. galaxies
  4. personalities
  5. suns
  6. figures
  7. clusters
  8. dignitaries
Noun
  • Wolf-Rayet Stars Even the tiniest of stars is humbling on a human scale.
    — Phil Plait, Scientific American, 30 Oct. 2026
  • At a rally in Corpus Christi, staff verified guests by sticking gold stars on them—a callback of sorts to Talarico’s days as a public-school educator.
    — Jesús Rodríguez, New Yorker, 29 Oct. 2026
Definition of stars
Noun
  • Amid the movie’s disastrous box office run, various Hollywood celebrities rallied around Cruise and the movie.
    — Zack Sharf, Variety, 2 Nov. 2026
  • On the wall outside Shoukhrat Mitalipov’s laboratory at Oregon Health & Science University, visitors are greeted by framed portraits of furry scientific celebrities.
    — Megan Molteni, STAT, 2 Nov. 2026
Definition of celebrities
Noun
  • The team is now collaborating with NASA to investigate whether the approach could help analyse light from distant galaxies.
    — Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 4 Nov. 2026
  • However, as the universe cooled and expanded, these sites became the building blocks of far less chaotic galaxies.
    — Robert Lea, Space.com, 3 Nov. 2026
Definition of galaxies
Noun
  • Magnet Originals will provide advice and production support for media personalities, including Justin Tranter, Boyz II Men’s Shawn Stockman, and former NBA star Byron Scott.
    — Max Tani, semafor.com, 2 Nov. 2026
  • From decorating the tree and baking cookies to Champagne toasts and Rinna dancing atop the dining table, the family brings their personalities to a series of festive moments, all dressed in Express.
    — Lisa Lockwood, Footwear News, 2 Nov. 2026
Definition of personalities
Noun
  • The artist’s overall artistic language focuses on joy, which is brought to life with its gift boxes featuring luminous gold suns and sparkling silver stars throughout.
    — Kanika Talwar, Footwear News, 28 Oct. 2026
  • So far, astronomers have not detected any stupendously large black holes — currently, the largest black hole known may weigh about 36 billion suns.
    — Charles Q. Choi, Space.com, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of suns
Noun
  • There will be nonstop panels on TV and livestreams, analysts repeating analysis of days-old polls, and — come afternoon — figures from exit polls suggesting that Hispanics are voting in large numbers, or that the economy is a major issue.
    — Ben Smith, semafor.com, 3 Nov. 2026
  • In fact, only 33 colleges and universities in the country admit 10% or fewer of their undergraduate applicants, NACAC figures show.
    — Jon Marcus, NPR, 2 Nov. 2026
Definition of figures
Noun
  • Industrial parks, logistics hubs, and technology clusters are springing up.
    — Ningrong Liu, Fortune, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said earlier this month that two supercomputing clusters powered by Nvidia technologies had already been launched in the country.
    — Jenny Lee,Evelyn Cheng, CNBC, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of clusters
Noun
  • But when the late Queen Elizabeth II, Prime Minister Tony Blair and other dignitaries gathered at Westminster Abbey for a service of commemoration, the proceedings were interrupted by a Black man wearing a dashiki.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 28 Oct. 2026
  • Yarbrough, who died at age 76 on Saturday, would be stationed at the table throughout the GHSA playoffs, sometimes welcoming guests and dignitaries and otherwise answering questions and solving problems.
    — Stan Awtrey, AJC.com, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of dignitaries

Browse Nearby Words

luminance
luminaries
luminary
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Cite this Entry

“Luminaries.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/luminaries. Accessed 5 Nov. 2026.

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