radiance
Americannoun
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radiant brightness or light.
the radiance of the tropical sun.
- Synonyms:
- brilliance, splendor, resplendence
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warm, cheerful brightness.
the radiance of her expression.
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Rare. radiation.
noun
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the quality or state of being radiant
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Le. a measure of the amount of electromagnetic radiation leaving or arriving at a point on a surface. It is the radiant 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
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of radiance
Compare meaning
How does radiance compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
Radiance is a type of glowing: either from a light source like the sun or a healthy, beaming person. The sun radiates lights, and bright objects that give off light rays have a quality called radiance. The sun's radiance can be felt the strongest in the afternoon. We use lights for their radiance: they brighten rooms and streets. Also, if someone is happy and healthy, we can talk about their radiance. A sign of radiance in a person is a wide smile, and pregnant women are often said to have a glow or radiance because they’re full of life.
Vocabulary lists containing radiance
Talk Like Shakespeare Day, List 1
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"The Pedestrian" by Ray Bradbury
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A Single Shard
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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.
However violent Gandhi’s quest for non-violence becomes, the production evolves into impossible radiance, turning the opera into something resembling a Passion Play.
From Los Angeles Times • May 21, 2026
Drew Sensue-Weinstein’s sound design, which included adroit use of reverb on voices and instruments, dovetailed with Gabriel Crouch’s skillful conducting, which brought out the score’s transparent, early music-style radiance.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 12, 2026
And in their first feature lead role, the queer, L.A.-born actor Tonatiuh embodies all of Molina’s contradictions — his bluster, his pain, his radiance — to heart-wrenching effect.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 23, 2025
Another critic said he had "a fluid physical grace and an inner radiance that sometimes makes it seem as if he's lit from within".
From BBC • Sep. 16, 2025
She followed them, and as she crossed the threshold to the hall where the mother sat holding her young son, a divine radiance filled the doorway and awe fell upon Metaneira.
From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton
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.
