fulgent

adjective

ful·​gent ˈfu̇l-jənt  ˈfəl- 

: dazzlingly bright : radiant

fulgently adverb

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 dazzling light of the sky at sunset. The word comes from the Latin verb fulgēre, meaning "to shine brightly." While not the most common of descriptors, English speakers have been using fulgent to depict radiant splendor since at least the 15th century.

Synonyms

• beaming
• bedazzling
• bright
• brilliant
• candescent
• clear
• dazzling
• effulgent
• glowing
• incandescent
• lambent
• lucent
• lucid
• luminous
• lustrous
• radiant
• refulgent
• sheeny
• shining
• shiny
• splendid

Examples of fulgent in a Sentence

a fulgent sun peeked from behind the clouds

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, borrowed from Latin fulgent-, fulgens, present participle of fulgēre "to shine brightly, flash, lighten" — more at phlegm

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

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