Wordsmith.org: the magic of words


A.Word.A.Day

 About | Media | Search | Contact  


Home

Today's Word

Yesterday's Word

Archives

FAQ
Mar 23, 2011
This week's theme
Miscellaneous words

This week's words
usufruct
bailiwick
effulgent
lapidary
taradiddle

Got a website?
Free content for your site
Words, quotations & more
Discuss
Feedback
RSS/XML
Bookmark and Share Facebook Twitter Digg MySpace Bookmark and Share
A.Word.A.Day
with Anu Garg

effulgent

PRONUNCIATION:
(i-FUHL-juhnt, i-fool-)

MEANING:
adjective: Shining brilliantly; radiant.

ETYMOLOGY:
From Latin effulgere (to shine out), from ex- (out) + fulgere (to shine). Ultimately from the Indo-European root bhel- (to shine or burn), which is also the source of blaze, blank, blond, bleach, blanket, and flame. Earliest documented use: 1737.

USAGE:
"No other ballet so remorselessly exposes the gulf between effulgent grandeur and mere competence."
Allen Robertson; The Sleeping Beauty; The Times (London, UK); Jul 27, 2007.

See more usage examples of effulgent in Vocabulary.com's dictionary.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
Sometimes a man wants to be stupid if it lets him do a thing his cleverness forbids. -John Steinbeck, novelist, Nobel laureate (1902-1968)

We need your help

Help us continue to spread the magic of words to readers everywhere

Donate

Subscriber Services
Awards | Stats | Links | Privacy Policy
Contribute | Advertise

© 1994-2025 Wordsmith