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.
This amalgamation of excessive style is a favorite at the multiplex these days, typically to lackluster effect.
From Salon • May 19, 2026
Authors often shine on the page but can be lackluster on camera.
From Los Angeles Times • May 18, 2026
Intel, which has tallied big gains this year after a long stretch of lackluster performance, didn’t take out its Aug. 31, 2000, record close until April 24, Dow Jones Market Data showed.
From MarketWatch • May 15, 2026
Revenue rose as the Guinness maker works to revive lackluster drinks sales in North America.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 6, 2026
Now its lackluster facade is gray from mold and pollution, and its walls cracked from neglect.
From "First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers" by Loung Ung
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.
