magnificence

[ mag-nif-uh-suhns ]

noun

1. the quality or state of being magnificent; splendor; grandeur; sublimity:

   the magnificence of snow-covered mountains; the magnificence of his achievements.

   Synonyms: stateliness, nobility, majesty

2. impressiveness of surroundings:

   the magnificence of Versailles.

   Synonyms: sumptuousness, luxuriousness, opulence

   Antonyms: poverty, squalor

magnificence

/ mæɡˈnɪfɪsəns /

noun

1. the quality of being magnificent

Word History and Origins

Origin of magnificence¹

1300–50; Middle English < Latin magnificentia, equivalent to magnificent- magnificent + -ia -y ³; -ence

Word History and Origins

Origin of magnificence¹

C14: via French from Latin magnificentia

Example Sentences

He could not restore the magnificence of Imperial Russia without its former land acquisitions — and without its supposed former people.

From Washington Post

Numbers are easier to understand than music, so when we try to explain the magnificence of Adele, we tend to bombard each other with digits.

From Washington Post

The magnificence of whales, like the magnificence of cathedrals, has a unique ability to infuse us with awe.

From Nautilus

For the first time, I got a sense of the magnificence and prestige of the company.

From Fortune

That very magnificence remains a measure of what a single gun can destroy.

From The Daily Beast

Magnificence By Lydia Millet A woman moves into an old house full of taxidermy in the aftermath of trauma.

From The Daily Beast

Suddenly, she questions, "Who wants to live like that anymore, all that majesty and magnificence?"

From The Daily Beast

The magnificence of our legal system, your Honor, is that we do not seek an eye for an eye.

From The Daily Beast

The graceful flying-fish, like a fair white bird, goes glancing above the blue magnificence of the tropical seas.

From Project Gutenberg

He would not want to exchange his splendid father for all the glory and magnificence of the king's court.

From Project Gutenberg

Round her neck depended from a black velvet band, strings of diamonds of great size and magnificence.

From Project Gutenberg

Thomas Sanchez, a Spanish Jesuit, died, and was buried with extraordinary magnificence.

From Project Gutenberg

I could observe groups and clusters of coloured coral and madrepore-stone, whose magnificence challenges all description.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• elegance
• greatness
• richness
• splendor