Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun An object, such as a celestial body, that gives light.
- noun In astrology, one of the brightest celestial objects, such as the sun, moon, or bright planets.
- noun A person who inspires others or achieves eminence in a field. synonym: celebrity.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun A light-giver; a body that illuminates or gives out light: applied especially to the sun and moon.
- noun Hence One who is a source of intellectual light; a person who illustrates any subject, or enlightens mankind: as, the great luminaries of an age; a luminary of literature or science.
- noun An illumination.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun Any body that gives light, especially one of the heavenly bodies.
- noun One who illustrates any subject, or enlightens mankind.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun One that is an inspiration to others; one who has achieved success in his chosen field; a
leading light . - noun An artificial light; an
illumination . - noun A body that gives light; especially, one of the
heavenly bodies .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun a celebrity who is an inspiration to others
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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"Sir, Mr. Fletcher was a luminary -- _a luminary_, did I say?
Fletcher of Madeley Brigadier Margaret Allen
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But on the fourth day God created the great luminary, that is, the sun, to have rule and authority [1718] over the day: for it is by it that day is made: for it is day when the sun is above the earth, and the duration of a day is the course of the sun over the earth from its rising till its setting.
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The luminary was a golden-haired, beaming, mild-eyed, God-like creature, gazing down in the vigour and intentness of youth upon an earth that was brimming with interest for him.
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The luminary was a golden-haired, beaming, mild-eyed, God-like creature, gazing down in the vigour and intentness of youth upon an earth that was brimming with interest for him.
Tess of the d'Urbervilles Thomas Hardy 1884
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Indeed, Brewster is what I would call a luminary of luscious lattes, wot! '
IGN Complete 2009
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Prof. BERNARD: Van Vechten was friends with the president of Fisk at the time, Charles Johnson, who was another kind of -- you know, kind of luminary of this period, and later, you know, of -- sort of black politics at this time.
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Eclipses they attribute to the attempts of the Evil Spirits to embarrass the labours of the luminary which is eclipsed.
Traditions of the North American Indians, Vol. 1 (of 3) James Athearn Jones
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I’ve never been called luminary before, and I think it’s a new favorite word.
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Out of the love He bore Enoch, God arrayed him in a magnificent garment, to which every kind of luminary in existence was attached, and a crown gleaming with forty-nine jewels, the splendor of which pierced to all parts of the seven heavens and to the four corners of the earth.
The Legends of the Jews — Volume 1 Louis Ginzberg 1913
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In benignant and gracious conduct he was to be as a "luminary" (_phôstêr_), moving calm and bright in the dark hemisphere of the world.
Philippian Studies Lessons in Faith and Love from St. Paul's Epistle to the Philippians 1880
oroboros commented on the word luminary
LumInARy
June 15, 2008