Synonyms of lustrous

lustrous

adjective

ˈlə-strəs 

1

as in luminous

giving off or reflecting much light

the lustrous finish on the satin bedspread adds to the feeling of luxury

Synonyms & Similar Words

• luminous
• dazzling
• shining
• glowing
• shiny
• bright
• radiant
• gleaming
• brilliant
• shimmering
• sparkling
• splendid
• refulgent
• effulgent
• glistening
• glittering
• flickering
• flashing
• incandescent
• lambent
• lucid
• blazing
• lucent
• polished
• clear
• fulgent
• sheeny
• candescent
• fiery
• bedazzling
• burning
• beaming
• blinding
• shined
• flaming
• shimmery
• sunny
• burnished
• ardent
• twinkling
• scintillant
• scintillating
• red-hot
• glimmering
• glancing
• gemmy
• glaring
• glinting
• winking
• flaring
• glistering
• agleam
• aglitter
• combusting
• coruscant
• ultrabright
• ablaze
• superbright

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• dull
• dim
• dark
• lackluster
• dusky
• blackened
• obscure
• darkened
• somber
• gloomy
• darkish
• murky
• darkling
• darksome
• obscured
• unlit
• pitch-black
• lightless
• shadowy
• dimmed
• pitch-dark
• gray
• pale
• cloudy
• unbright
• unbrilliant
• shady
• tenebrous
• leaden
• sunless
• shadowlike
• palish

2

as in polished

having a shiny surface or finish

lustrous silver jewelry adorned her neck

Synonyms & Similar Words

• polished
• glistening
• glossy
• sleek
• satin
• gleaming
• burnished
• rubbed
• satiny
• silky
• glittering
• buffed
• shining
• reflective
• brushed
• glazed
• silken
• lacquered
• glassy
• varnished
• slick
• slippery
• semigloss
• semilustrous
• eggshell
• shellacked

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• dull
• dim
• flat
• lusterless
• lackluster
• matte
• unvarnished

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective lustrous differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of lustrous are bright, brilliant, luminous, and radiant. While all these words mean "shining or glowing with light," lustrous stresses an even, rich light from a surface that reflects brightly without glittering.

When might bright be a better fit than lustrous?

The words bright and lustrous are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, bright implies emitting or reflecting a high degree of light.

When would brilliant be a good substitute for lustrous?

While the synonyms brilliant and lustrous are close in meaning, brilliant implies intense often sparkling brightness.

When is luminous a more appropriate choice than lustrous?

The synonyms luminous and lustrous are sometimes interchangeable, but luminous implies emission of steady, suffused, glowing light by reflection or in surrounding darkness.

When could radiant be used to replace lustrous?

The words radiant and lustrous can be used in similar contexts, but radiant stresses the emission or seeming emission of rays of light.

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of lustrous

There’s an understated lavishness; no celebrity interior designers have been let loose and rooms have a lustrous palette of pinks, yellows and blues. —Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 19 May 2026

Del Toro’s film, the last one to début in the 2006 competition, was the first one unveiled at this year’s festival, in a lustrous new 4K restoration. —Justin Chang, New Yorker, 18 May 2026

His new film Fatherland, like Cold War and Ida, is shot in a lustrous monochrome that turns shadows into punctuation marks and sunbeams into something holy, and that makes its performers, chief among them an incredible Sandra Hüller, look lit from within. —Alison Willmore, Vulture, 15 May 2026

Leaves are a lustrous green and turn yellow, orange, or crimson in the fall. —Joshua Siskin, Oc Register, 30 Apr. 2026