Word of the Day
: October 5, 2014fulgent
playWhat It Means
: dazzlingly bright : radiant
fulgent in Context
"Lilac and wistaria and redbud, even the shabby heaven-trees, had never been finer, fulgent, with a burning scent…." - William Faulkner, Sanctuary, 1931
"Both queens were outfitted with lush and representative mantles, white kid gloves, splendid jewelry and dazzling crowns to make a picture of fulgent finery." - Nell Nolan, Times-Picayune (New Orleans), February 26, 2012
Did You Know?
"The weary Sun betook himself to rest; - / Then issued Vesper from the fulgent west." That's how the appearance of the evening star in the glowing western sky at sunset looked to 19th-century poet William Wordsworth. Fulgent was a particularly apt choice to describe the radiant light of the sky at sunset. The word derives from the Latin verb fulgēre, meaning "to shine," a root which is itself akin to the Latin flagrare, meaning "to burn." English speakers have been using fulgent to depict resplendence since at least the 15th century.
Test Your Vocabulary with M-W Quizzes
Name That Synonym
Fill in the blanks to create a synonym of fulgent: _ _ ca _ d _s _ent. The answer is …
