Word of the Day

: August 30, 2021

numinous

adjective NOO-muh-nus

What It Means

Numinous describes things having a mysterious or spiritual quality.

// I was filled with a numinous sensation when, in the dark of night, a shooting star flashed across the sky.

// The tourists were overcome by the numinous atmosphere of the catacombs.

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numinous in Context

"A musician, educator and serial collaborator, Win is also a collector of objects, thoughts and, of course, words—her poetry an illumination of the everyday beauty found in things both tangible and numinous." — Denise Sullivan, Datebook (The San Francisco Chronicle), 19 Oct. 2020

Did You Know?

Numinous is from the Latin word numen, meaning "nod of the head" or "divine will" (the latter sense suggesting a figurative nod, of assent or of command, of the divine head). English speakers have been using numen for centuries with the meaning "a spiritual force or influence." The meanings of the adjective include "supernatural" or "mysterious" (as in "possessed of a numinous energy force"), "holy" ("the numinous atmosphere of the catacombs"), and "appealing to the aesthetic sense" ("the numinous nuances of her art"). There are also the nouns numinousness and numinosity, although these are rare.