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
  • Catering to VICs and celebrities, Lepire says that her clients are often planning for rarefied parties, and come to Timeless Vixen to source vintage couture pieces that will elevate their look.
    — Joe Bobowicz, Vogue, 26 Oct. 2026
  • She was inducted into the Broadcast Pioneers Hall of Fame in 2010 and was among the first celebrities honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
    — Mya Copeland, Variety, 25 Oct. 2026
Definition of celebrities
Noun
  • Turn the volume up and that pinhole dilates, revealing swirling galaxies of vocal harmonies, upright bass plucks, and cascading piano runs.
    — Dash Lewis, Pitchfork, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Stupendously large black holes greater than 1 million billion to 10 million billion suns in mass would be heavier than entire galaxies.
    — Charles Q. Choi, Space.com, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of galaxies
Noun
  • Lisa locks Bart, Milhouse, and Nelson in a room and introduces them to her many personalities, some more hostile than others.
    — Joshua Kurp, Vulture, 26 Oct. 2026
  • Fox News personalities Sean Hannity and Ainsley Earhardt are married.
    — Kimberly Nordyke, HollywoodReporter, 25 Oct. 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
  • The cost figures draw on the Family Budget Calculator developed by the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute from federal data on rents, food costs and consumer spending, with The Post’s own health care estimates.
    — Amy L. Wong, Washington Post, 27 Oct. 2026
  • Another star turn goes to Mary Ellen Pleasant, who was arguably America’s first Black millionaire and inarguably one of the most canny and chameleonlike figures this country has ever produced.
    — Kathryn Schulz, New Yorker, 26 Oct. 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
  • 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
  • Since King Charles’ accession to the throne in 2022, Prince William and his wife, Kate Middleton, have regularly taken on the role of welcoming visiting foreign dignitaries.
    — Meredith Kile, PEOPLE, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of dignitaries

Browse Nearby Words

luminance
luminaries
luminary
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Luminaries.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/luminaries. Accessed 2 Nov. 2026.

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