Synonyms for brilliant
- adjective
Synonyms by meaning
Adjective
1. Splendid — of surpassing excellence; magnificent
splendid, glorious, magnificent, superb, fantastic, exceptional, wonderful, excellent, terrific, marvelous US, marvellous UK, good, dazzling, gorgeous, striking, luminous, resplendent, stellar, famous, renowned, fine, distinctive, distinguished
3. Ingenious — highly intelligent
ingenious, brainy, intelligent, keen, sharp-witted, smart dated
Other
scintillating, sunny, glaring, flaming, crash hot slang AU NZ, brightsome dated, shineful rare
Definitions
- adj. 1
Shining brightly.
the brilliant lights along the promenade
- adj. 2
Of surpassing excellence; magnificent.
The actor's performance in the play was simply brilliant.
- adj. 3
Highly intelligent.
She is a brilliant scientist.
- adj. 4
Both bright and saturated.
butterflies with brilliant blue wings
Related words
Choose the right word
Brilliant denotes a shining of great brightness, but with gleams or flashes. A man of shining talents is made conspicious by possessing them; if they flash upon the mind with a peculiarly striking effect, we call them brilliant; if his brilliancy is marked by great vivacity and occasional intensity, he is sparkling.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
Example sentences
- glorious The heroes were congratulated with a glorious song.
- magnificent Have you honestly ever seen a view so magnificent?
- superb It goes without saying that he is a superb pianist.
- splendid His nephew was absorbed in the splendid fireworks.
- vivid The author's language is vivid, supple and nuanced.
- lucid Yanni was lucid and aware of what he was doing.
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| brilliant | steady | |
| glorious | rising | |
| magnificent | steady | |
| superb | steady | |
| splendid | steady | |
| vivid | rising |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 3 letters
- gay1
- 4 letters
- good1, fine1, keen1
- 5 letters
- smart1, sharp1, sunny2, vivid2, lucid2
- 6 letters
- famous2, golden2, bright1, superb2, lively2, orient3, brainy2
- 7 letters
- shining2, stellar2, flaming2, glaring2, beaming2
- 8 letters
- gorgeous2, striking2, glorious3, renowned2, terrific3, splendid2, colorful3, dazzling3, luminous3, shineful
- 9 letters
- wonderful3, fantastic3, excellent3, sparkling2, marvelous3, colourful, ingenious3
- 10 letters
- marvellous3, glittering3, brightsome
- 11 letters
- intelligent4, magnificent4, exceptional4, distinctive3, resplendent3
- 13 letters
- distinguished3, scintillating
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (sunny2 = 2 syllables).