refulgent

[ri-fuhl-juh nt]

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adjective

shining brightly; radiant; gleaming: Crystal chandeliers and gilded walls made the opera house a refulgent setting for the ball.

Origin of refulgent

First recorded in 1500–10, refulgent is from the Latin word refulgent- (stem of refulgēns, present participle of refulgēre to radiate light). See re-, fulgent

Related formsre·ful·gence, re·ful·gen·cy, re·ful·gent·ness, nounre·ful·gent·ly, adverbun·re·ful·gent, adjectiveun·re·ful·gent·ly, adverb

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for refulgence

flash, glare, sun, radiation, window, lamp, ray, daylight, candle, bulb, glow, star, lantern, sunshine, brightness, brilliance, shimmer, sparkle, glitter, sheen

Examples from the Web for refulgence

Historical Examples of refulgence

If the children looked brilliant to Pop he did not reflect their refulgence.
In a Little Town
Rupert Hughes
Brock shone with a refulgence that bedimmed all expectations.
The Husbands of Edith
George Barr McCutcheon
Then suppose that after twenty-four hours the sun should burst upon us in all his refulgence and glorious magnificence.
Biography of a Slave
Charles Thompson
Her eyes were open now, and the refulgence falling around her from the burning cedar, seemed like the glory of heaven.
Mabel's Mistake
Ann S. Stephens
La Petite Mer is in full view, the opposite shore lost in the refulgence of a reflected glow, as if it were the open sea itself.
Rambles on the Riviera
Francis Miltoun

British Dictionary definitions for refulgence

refulgent

adjective

literary shining, brilliant, or radiant

Derived Formsrefulgence or rare refulgency, nounrefulgently, adverb

Word Origin for refulgent

C16: from Latin refulgēre to shine brightly, from re- + fulgēre to shine

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for refulgence

1630s, from Latin refulgentia "reflected luster, splendor," from refulgens (see refulgent). Related: Refulgency (1610s).

refulgent

adj.

c.1500, from Middle French refulgent or directly from Latin refulgentem (nominative refulgens), present participle of refulgere "flash back, shine brilliantly," from re- "back" (see re-) + fulgere "to shine" (see bleach (v.)).