numinous

[noo-muh-nuhs, nyoo-]

adjective

1. of, relating to, or like a numen; spiritual or supernatural.

2. surpassing comprehension or understanding; mysterious.

   that element in artistic expression that remains numinous.

3. arousing one's elevated feelings of duty, honor, loyalty, etc..

   a benevolent and numinous paternity.

numinous

/ ˈnjuːmɪnəs /

adjective

1. denoting, being, or relating to a numen; divine

2. arousing spiritual or religious emotions

3. mysterious or awe-inspiring

Word History and Origins

Origin of numinous¹

First recorded in 1640–50; from Latin nūmin- (stem of nūmen ) numen + -ous

Word History and Origins

Origin of numinous¹

C17: from Latin numin-, _numen + _-ous

Example Sentences

These soldiers “have no ears,” a numinous voice told Sitting Bull.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Other people are already, in some sense, absent—existing only in our mental perception or, these days, in the numinous world of our extended digital consciousness.

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Kirk was after something cooler, grander, more numinous and entirely of the moment: celebrity as a celebration of itself, untethered to any specific skills or accomplishments.

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“Is this just sensory stimulation? Is this gesturing at the numinous? Is this referencing the mystical? There’s no meta-narrative here.”

Read more on Los Angeles Times

What they made me think of, instead, was the 19th century, and in particular the paintings of Winslow Homer, who depicted the sea often, giving it a numinous quality that could be dangerous or comradely.

Read more on New York Times