brilliance

[ bril-yuhns ]
/ ˈbrɪl yəns /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR brilliance ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

great brightness; luster: the brilliance of a fine diamond.
excellence or distinction; conspicuous talent, mental ability, etc.
splendor, elegance, or magnificence: the brilliance of the court of Louis XIV.
Optics. that luminance of a body consisting of its saturation and brightness.

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Origin of brilliance

First recorded in 1745–55; brilli(ant) + -ance

OTHER WORDS FROM brilliance

o·ver·bril·liance, noun

Words nearby brilliance

brill, brill's disease, brill-symmers disease, brill-zinsser disease, brillat-savarin, brilliance, brilliancy, brilliant, brilliant cresyl blue, brilliant cut, brilliant green
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Words related to brilliance

talent, intelligence, wisdom, excellence, inventiveness, cleverness, inspiration, glory, grandeur, brilliancy, smarts, sagacity, smartness, shine, effulgence, radiance, luminosity, sparkle, blaze, luster

Example sentences from the Web for brilliance

British Dictionary definitions for brilliance

brilliance

brilliancy

/ (ˈbrɪljəns) /

noun

great brightness; radiance
excellence or distinction in physical or mental ability; exceptional talent
splendour; magnificencethe brilliance of the royal court
physics a former term for luminance
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012