Skip to main content
radiant

radiant

64 4.1
Shining or glowing brightly, often seeming very happy
  • adjective
  • /ˈreɪdiənt/
translation icon : radiante
  • She's always been the most radiant person I've known.
  • radiant smile
  • radiant heat
  • radiant light

I want to make sure my face is very bright, radiant, and youthful.

Autoplay Next

Examples

  • You are as radiant as ever, Violet.

  • You look especially radiant today, Your Grace.

  • A light came - a radiant light.

  • I find it somewhat difficult to decide which card to play in the presence of such a radiant woman.

  • And the sky is clear, the sun is out, radiant, and it smiles.

    Academic text (2014)
  • Every day we bathed in the radiant heat of the sun.

    Academic text (2000)
  • She is looking unusually radiant tonight.

  • As she was leaving the room, Twyla walked in, fresh and radiant in a short yellow sundress.

    Fiction book (1994)
  • Forgive me, Princess, for startling you, but you startled me, for I have never seen such a radiant beauty before.

  • You look especially radiant today, Your Grace.

Synonyms

bright
vsradiant
459 1.0

Full of strong light that makes a place easy to see

implies an outgoing, glowing quality rather than just being lit
shiny
vsradiant
302 1.0

Bright and smooth because it reflects light

seems to send out light rather than only reflecting it
luminous
vsradiant
38 4.8

Shining with a soft steady light like a lantern

sends out brighter, more energetic light rather than a faint glow
brilliant
vsradiant
30 3.0

Very bright and shining with strong light

emits light too but usually less intensely overwhelming
resplendent
vsradiant
11 7.9

Bright and beautiful in a way that looks impressive

gives off light but with less grand visual impact
lustrous
vsradiant
9 5.3

Shining with a soft, smooth glow like polished pearls

sends light outward rather than focusing on surface reflection
luminescent
vsradiant
  • Specialized
5 7.0

A thing that gives off light without heat, like fireflies or jellyfish

describes general bright emission, not the heatless production method
glowy
vsradiant
5 5.6

A soft bright look that seems to shine from within

gives a stronger, more outward-sending light than an inner sheen
sparkling
vsradiant
5 1.3

Shining with small bright points like light on snow

emits steady, continuous light rather than intermittent flashes
incandescent
vsradiant
  • Literature
3 7.5

Full of strong feeling or passion

emits bright light without implying intense emotion
dazzling
vsradiant
2 3.1

So bright that it is hard to see

gives off clear light without causing visual discomfort
glittering
vsradiant
2 3.0

Shining with many small bright points like stars

gives an overall glow rather than separate flashing highlights
effulgent
vsradiant
  • Literature
1 9.9

Shining with a strong bright light

sends out bright light but with less extreme showiness
shining
vsradiant
1 1.0

Bright and reflecting light because it is clean or polished

produces or seems to produce light rather than just reflecting it
blazing
vsradiant
1 3.5

Shining very brightly like the sun

produces strong light but usually without fiery force
lambent
vsradiant
  • Literature
1 9.6

A soft, gentle light that seems to move

sends light more steadily and usually more brightly
luminiferous
vsradiant
  • Specialized
1 9.9

To give off light or let light pass through

is the common sense of visible shining rather than a technical term
refulgent
vsradiant
  • Literature
9.9

Shining brightly like the sun or a bright lamp

emits clear light but is less overwhelmingly impressive
gleaming
vsradiant
3.2

A bright shine made when light bounces off a surface

appears to send out light rather than only being reflective
gleamy
vsradiant
4.2

A smooth shiny surface that reflects light

tends to send out stronger light rather than mere surface shine
glistening
vsradiant
3.4

Shining with bright light, often because it is wet or smooth

is seen as emitting or appearing to emit light rather than just reflecting
beamy
vsradiant
  • UK
8.6

Shining with bright light or looking very happy

produces light too but is less imageably beamlike
lightful
vsradiant
  • Archaic
7.7

Full of bright light

conveys a stronger sense of outward shining rather than general brightness

Antonyms

1.0

With little or no light and not bright

31 1.0

Not bright or shiny with weak colour

Compounds

radiant energy
  • Specialized
1 5.0

Power that travels through space as light or radio waves

radiant flux
  • Specialized
1 7.5

The amount of light or heat energy that moves each second

radiant heating
  • Specialized
4.4

A way to make a building warm by using panels in floors, walls, or ceilings that give out warmth

How Bright

dazzling
2 3.1
brilliant
30 3.0
radiant
64 4.1
faint
148 2.7

Surface Forms

radiant positive
radianter comparative
radiantest superlative

Morphology

radiant = radiate (transparent) = radiate + ant

Formed by the verb 'radiate' plus the adjectival suffix '-ant', yielding the expected meaning 'emitting light or energy'.

Etymology

Radiant comes from the Latin word radius, which means 'ray' or 'spoke' and has the same root as radiate, so imagine the sun's rays spreading out. That's why something radiant is bright or seems to send out light.