luminance
Americannoun
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the state or quality of being luminous.
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Also called luminosity. the quality or condition of radiating or reflecting light.
the blinding luminance of the sun.
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Optics. the quantitative measure of brightness of a light source or an illuminated surface, equal to luminous flux per unit solid angle emitted per unit projected area of the source or surface.
noun
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a state or quality of radiating or reflecting light
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L. a measure (in candelas per square metre) of the brightness of a point on a surface that is radiating or reflecting light. It is the luminous intensity in a given direction of a small element of surface area divided by the orthogonal projection of this area onto a plane at right angles to the direction
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The luminous intensity of a light source per unit area. Occasionally the lambert unit is used to measure luminance.
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Also called photometric brightness
Etymology
Origin of luminance
1875–80; < Latin lūmin- (stem of lūmen ) light + -ance
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.
Lynch’s affection for the city and its singular luminance emanates from the intimate prints documenting its otherwise overlooked corners.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2026
It also suggested that 40,000 candela per sq m - a measure of luminance - may be an "important threshold for the experience of glare being more likely".
From BBC ● Feb. 18, 2026
The Perseid meteor shower is back for its annual display, dotting our skies with its signature bright, streaking trails at peak luminance.
From Salon ● Aug. 9, 2024
Conventional blue OLEDs typically require around 4 V for a luminance of 100 cd/m2; this is higher than the industrial target of 3.7 V -- the voltage of lithium-ion batteries commonly used in smartphones.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 20, 2023
In their quiet luminance, the scars left from the Rupture almost disappeared.
From "Beasts of Prey" by Ayana Gray
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.
