luminaria
Americannoun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of luminaria
1945–50; < Mexican Spanish, Spanish: any lamp or lantern displayed during a festival < Medieval Latin, Late Latin lūmināria, originally neuter plural of lūmināris lamp; see lumen, -ar 1
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.
Giant carnivalesque luminaria lights twinkled in jewel tones over rows of pews in the “Purgatory” room; later, Primal Scream performed.
From New York Times • Sep. 26, 2017
Each luminaria symbolizes one casualty, as a bagpiper plays on a hill and thousands gather in remembrance before driving slowly through the park in the dark, headlights out.
From Washington Times • Apr. 14, 2015
Blessing and lighting of the luminaria, a Christmas Eve tradition.
From Washington Post • Dec. 21, 2013
SUN Celebrate Redmond’s 100 years, bonfire, music and luminaria, 5 p.m.
From Seattle Times • Dec. 27, 2012
Then, we went outside to put up luminaria, which is an activity where all our neighbors fill brown paper bags with sand and line the street with them.
From "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" by Stephen Chbosky
![]()
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.