translucent

[ trans-loo-suhnt, tranz- ]

See synonyms for translucent on Thesaurus.com

adjective

permitting light to pass through but diffusing it so that persons, objects, etc., on the opposite side are not clearly visible:Frosted window glass is translucent but not transparent.
easily understandable; lucid: a translucent explication.

clear; transparent: translucent seawater.

Origin of translucent

First recorded in 1590–1600; from Latin trānslūcent- (stem of trānslūcēns ), present participle of trānslūcēre “to shine through”; see trans-, lucent

synonym study For translucent

1. See transparent.

Opposites for translucent

opaque

See antonyms for translucent on Thesaurus.com

Other words from translucent

trans·lu·cence, trans·lu·cen·cy, noun
trans·lu·cent·ly, adverb
sub·trans·lu·cence, noun
sub·trans·lu·cen·cy, noun
sub·trans·lu·cent, adjective

Words that may be confused with translucent

translucent , transparent (see synonym study at transparent)

Words Nearby translucent

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use translucent in a sentence

Lay a piece of translucent paper over your design and use a pencil to fill in the areas that you want to be inked by the finished stamp.
Make a custom rubber stamp to leave your mark on everything | Natalie Wallington | August 20, 2021 | Popular-Science
Scientists aboard Falkor discovered the translucent, scaleless Mariana snailfish in 2014 while surveying the Mariana Trench, the deepest place on Earth.
The Evolutionary Wonders in the Deep Sea - Issue 102: Hidden Truths | Annie Roth | June 30, 2021 | Nautilus
Now Mayhe, a municipal veterinarian in nearby Mangaratiba, was motorboating across translucent waters to see for himself.
People have abandoned hundreds of cats on a deserted Brazilian island. Officials aren’t sure how to save them. | Terrence McCoy | June 4, 2021 | Washington Post
Turmeric dyes translucent vermicelli noodles deep golden for a stunning and delicious vegetarian main.
Recipes for rice noodle stir-fries and salads, to get you through thick and thin | Kari Sonde | May 31, 2021 | Washington Post
There’s beauty everywhere in the world, as you’re reminded when you see sunlight filtered through a piglet’s translucent ears in Viktor Kosakovskiy’s radiant documentary Gunda.
The Best Movies of 2021 So Far | Stephanie Zacharek | May 25, 2021 | Time

Like thinner and translucent for summer and warmer for winter.
Tatiana Sorokko Is the Queen of Vintage Couture | Anthony Haden-Guest | October 8, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
When they are done, the casing has transformed from translucent membrane into chewy, wrinkled coat.
The Texas Church of Beef | Jane & Michael Stern | April 27, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
The translucent green polyester has been stretched into door handles, moldings, and even a telephone.
The Best Things to See at Frieze Art Fair NY 2013 | Isabel Wilkinson | May 10, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
He used translucent fabrics to suggest nudity without ever really revealing very much.
France’s Next Generation of Designers: Cédric Charlier, Nicolas Andreas Taralis, Anthony Vaccarello | Robin Givhan | September 26, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST
A new facade will be made from translucent plastic panels, with sliding sections that will let the park seem to enter the center.
A Ruin Set for Rebirth | Blake Gopnik | April 27, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST
A band of limestone also occurs at Templeton containing masses of a light-coloured translucent serpentine.
Asbestos | Robert H. Jones
Two of the four walls of the guest-room were of shoji, a lattice covered with translucent rice-paper.
The Dragon Painter | Mary McNeil Fenollosa
Tatsu had, as rudely, reopened the shoji panels, tearing a large hole in the translucent paper.
The Dragon Painter | Mary McNeil Fenollosa
Common camphor forms a translucent mass of hexagonal prisms, melting at 175 and boiling at 204.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 2 | Various
As they waddled closer they puffed under the weight of heavy belts sagging with rows of odd, translucent instruments.
Restricted Tool | Malcolm B. Morehart

British Dictionary definitions for translucent

translucent

/ (trænzˈluːsənt) /

adjective

allowing light to pass through partially or diffusely; semitransparent

Origin of translucent

C16: from Latin translūcēre to shine through, from trans- + lūcēre to shine

Derived forms of translucent

translucence or translucency, noun
translucently, adverb

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

Scientific definitions for translucent

translucent

[ trăns-lōō′sənt ]

Allowing radiation (most commonly light) to pass through, but causing diffusion. Frosted glass, for example, is translucent to visible light. Compare transparent.

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