luminous

/ˈlü-mə-nəs/

Middle English luminouse, luminose, borrowed from Anglo-French & Latin; Anglo-French luminous, borrowed from Latin lūminōsus "full of light, dazzling," from lūmin-, lūmen "light, source of light" + -ōsus -ous

adjective

  1. emitting or reflecting usually steady, suffused, or glowing light

  2. of or relating to light or to luminous flux

  3. bathed in or exposed to steady light

luminous objects—the nebula, the stars, the planets

bright brilliant radiant luminous lustrous mean shining or glowing with light. bright implies emitting or reflecting a high degree of light. brilliant implies intense often sparkling brightness. radiant stresses the emission or seeming emission of rays of light. luminous implies emission of steady, suffused, glowing light by reflection or in surrounding darkness. lustrous stresses an even, rich light from a surface that reflects brightly without glittering.

noun

  1. energy transferred in the form of visible radiation

noun

  1. radiant flux in the visible-wavelength range usually expressed in lumens instead of watts