bright
adjective
radiating or reflecting light; luminous; shining.
bright
1 American
[brahyt]
/ braɪt /
adjective
-
brighter,
comparative
-
brightest
superlative
-
radiating or reflecting light; luminous; shining.
The bright coins shone in the gloom.
-
filled with light.
The room was bright with sunshine.
-
vivid or brilliant.
a bright red dress;
bright passages of prose.
-
quick-witted or intelligent.
They gave promotions to bright employees.
- Synonyms:
- clever, ingenious, sharp-witted, sharp, discerning, keen
-
clever or witty, as a remark.
Bright comments enlivened the conversation.
-
animated; lively; cheerful.
a bright and happy child;
a bird's bright song.
-
characterized by happiness or gladness.
All the world seems bright and gay.
-
favorable or auspicious.
bright prospects for the future.
- Synonyms:
- promising
-
radiant or splendid.
the bright pageantry of court.
-
illustrious or glorious, as an era.
the bright days of the Renaissance.
-
clear or translucent, as liquid.
The bright water trickled through his fingers.
-
having a glossy, glazed, or polished finish.
-
intensely clear and vibrant in tone or quality; clear and sharp in sound.
a bright singing voice.
noun
-
brights,
-
the automobile or truck headlights used for driving at night or under conditions of decreased visibility.
-
the brighter level of intensity of these lights, usually deflected upward by switching on a bulb in the headlamp that strikes the lens at a different angle.
-
-
flue-cured, light-hued tobacco.
-
an artist's paintbrush having short, square-edged bristles.
-
Archaic. brightness; splendor.
adverb
brighter,
brightest
Bright
2
American
[brahyt]
/ braɪt /
noun
-
John, 1811–89, British statesman and economist.
-
Richard, 1789–1858, English physician.
bright
1
British
/ braɪt /
adjective
-
emitting or reflecting much light; shining
-
(of colours) intense or vivid
-
full of promise
a bright future
-
full of animation; cheerful
a bright face
-
informal quick witted or clever
a bright child
-
magnificent; glorious
a bright victory
-
polished; glistening
a bright finish
-
(of the voice) distinct and clear
-
(of a liquid) translucent and clear
a circle of bright water
-
very early in the morning
noun
-
a thin flat paintbrush with a straight sharp edge used for highlighting in oil painting
-
poetic brightness or splendour
the bright of his armour
adverb
Bright
2
British
/ braɪt /
noun
bright
Idioms
Synonym Usage
Bright, brilliant, radiant, shining refer to that which gives forth, is filled with, or reflects light. Bright suggests the general idea: bright flare, stars, mirror. Brilliant implies a strong, unusual, or sparkling brightness, often changeful or varied and too strong to be agreeable: brilliant sunlight. Radiant implies the pouring forth of steady rays of light, especially as are agreeable to the eyes: a radiant face. Shining implies giving forth or reflecting a strong or steady light: shining eyes.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
overbrightnessnoun
-
unbrightnessnoun
-
brightishadjective
-
overbrightadjective
-
superbrightadjective
-
unbrightadjective
-
brightlyadverb
-
overbrightlyadverb
-
unbrightlyadverb
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of bright
First recorded before 1000; Middle English; Old English breht, beorht; cognate with Gothic bairht(s), Old Saxon ber(a)ht, Old High German beraht, Old Norse bjartr; Welsh berth “splendid”; akin to Latin flagrāre “to blaze” ( see flagrant ( def. )), Albanian bardhë “white,” Sanskrit bhrājate “it shines”
Explanation
After a long, gray winter, it's hard to remember what a bright, sunny day is like. Bright means shining with light. The adjective bright is good for describing anything that emits, reflects, or is full of light — like the bright moon, the bright sky or the bright, well-lit room. Bright can also mean vivid or vibrant — such as a bright purple three-piece suit. More figuratively, bright means "full of hope or possibility" — like your bright future as a marine biologist.
Vocabulary lists containing bright
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
This time, Passaleva responded within minutes, allowing observations to begin while the event was still bright enough to study in detail.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 30, 2026
Kate said, before he was admitted to hospital, Paul was "very bright" and "funny".
From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026
The company’s foodservice business was a bright spot in the quarter, posting 2% sales growth.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 30, 2026
The program also provides money for nonlethal equipment to deter wolves, such as electric fences with bright flags.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 30, 2026
Mystery Auntie, sporting a bright floral, flowy, sleeveless top and green cargo shorts, had come from a warmer place.
From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith
“Mortgage rates of 8% are not an impossibility,” Lisa Sturtevant, chief economist at Bright MLS, told MarketWatch.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 24, 2026
Bright sea ice reflects much of the Sun's incoming energy, while darker ocean water absorbs more of it.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 23, 2026
Bright cameo as he pushes for a start.
From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026
The floods hit the iconic US park's Bright Angel Canyon and Phantom Ranch area on Saturday afternoon, forcing dozens of people to evacuate and damaging the sole water pipeline serving the area.
From Barron's ● Aug. 31, 2026
Bright white headlights gather behind us, around us.
From "I Can Make This Promise" by Christine Day
High pressure is building across the UK and this means the weather will become more settled with brighter conditions.
From BBC ● Sep. 21, 2026
According to Wu, their emitted light is roughly 150 times brighter than that of upconversion nanoparticles that have not been dye-sensitized.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 20, 2026
The middle section—called a bridge or release—opens onto pivotal chords, a harmonic highway that lifts the song to a brighter emotional plane.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
On Tuesday, he struck a brighter tone as he and the mayor celebrated breaking ground on the recreation center, which will include sports fields, tennis courts and a gym.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2026
The sun seemed to be mocking him, deliberately growing brighter to remind him of the time.
From "Beasts of Prey" by Ayana Gray
The opening stand between Banton and Duckett was also impressive - reminiscent of England's brightest ODIs days as they thrashed around the bowling at more than seven runs an over.
From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2026
Ariel is the brightest of Uranus' moons and the second closest to the planet.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 24, 2026
The main airport in Nashville, Tennessee, the home of country music, is to be renamed after one of its brightest stars, the late Dolly Parton who died last month.
From Barron's ● Sep. 11, 2026
One of its brightest colors is fuschia, a hue that Ruiz says Rosales has been obsessed with lately.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026
The Princess was always brightest in spring, just after the conifers emerged from the snow, their deep green needles seeming almost black against the tawny browns of soil and bark.
From "Educated" by Tara Westover
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
