1
as in star
a ball-shaped gaseous celestial body that shines by its own light
awed by the vast number of luminaries in the night sky
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2
as in celebrity
a person who is widely known and usually much talked about
luminaries from the worlds of sports, entertainment, and politics were at the gala
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as in lighted
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Examples of luminary in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 1 Oct. 2024
After starting a GoFundMe campaign to pay for moving expenses, a who’s who of country music luminaries — from Luke Laird to Travis — pitched in to raise more than $100,000 for the songwriter.
—Jonathan Bernstein, Rolling Stone, 27 Sep. 2024
During the full moon phase, the sun directly opposes the moon, triggering a push-and-pull effect between both luminaries, marking a time of fruition and culmination.
—Valerie Mesa, Peoplemag, 12 Sep. 2024
But very near the top of my favorites list are the Warlord Chronicles by Bernard Cornwell, one of the great luminaries of historical fiction.
—Erik Kain, Forbes, 8 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for luminary 
Noun
The movie digs into Williams's background and family, and showcases a bunch of luminaries waxing on about the composer's legacy, including commentary from filmmakers George Lucas, Kathleen Kennedy, Ron Howard and J.J. Abrams as well as Coldplay frontman Chris Martin.
—Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 1 Oct. 2024
After starting a GoFundMe campaign to pay for moving expenses, a who’s who of country music luminaries — from Luke Laird to Travis — pitched in to raise more than $100,000 for the songwriter.
—Jonathan Bernstein, Rolling Stone, 27 Sep. 2024
During the full moon phase, the sun directly opposes the moon, triggering a push-and-pull effect between both luminaries, marking a time of fruition and culmination.
—Valerie Mesa, Peoplemag, 12 Sep. 2024
But very near the top of my favorites list are the Warlord Chronicles by Bernard Cornwell, one of the great luminaries of historical fiction.
—Erik Kain, Forbes, 8 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for luminary
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'luminary.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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“Luminary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/luminary. Accessed 24 Oct. 2024.
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