Etymology
Origin of lackluster
Explanation
Lackluster is a compound adjective that means what it sounds like: if something is lackluster it lacks luster; in other words, it is without brilliance, shine, or vitality. Think dull. Shakespeare gave us the compound lackluster, first using the term in his play As You Like It. In 2:7, the character Jacques says, "And then he drew a dial from his poke, And, looking on it with lack-lustre eye..." Since Shakespeare first coined this word, it has been used to describe anything "blah"; lackluster sales would worry shop owners and a lackluster prom dress might help you blend in with the wallpaper.
Vocabulary lists containing lackluster
100 SAT Words Beginning with "J," "K," and "L"
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This Week in Pop Culture: November 3 - 9, 2018
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Talk Like Shakespeare Day, List 2
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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.
The type of play by the Chargers on Sunday was completely unacceptable, lackluster and disappointing for a team with Super Bowl aspirations.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2026
Lores, in the job now for just over six months, wants to remake parts of the business that have been lackluster for years, launch new features and slash billions of dollars in costs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026
Enforcement was lackluster, however, and legislative compromise killed a promising assessment to determine whether local Head Start programs were producing learning gains among their wee charges.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026
Spending ticked down at grocery stores too, while hobby spending was lackluster.
From Barron's ● Aug. 14, 2026
He graduated in June 1884 with a lackluster record and set out to find “some favorable location” in which to launch a practice.
From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson
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.
