Dictionary

resplendent en · ADJ

Pronunciation

• /ɹɪˈsplɛn.dənt/
• (Southern-England) audio

Etymology

From the obsolete sense of the English verb splendish (“to shine”), from Latin splendere (“to shine”), or from resplend + -ent, from Latin resplendere (“to shine back, glitter”).

Meanings

1. Shining brilliantly; gleaming; radiant.
   • The resplendent sun / Shone forth in all his glory. 1667, John Milton, Paradise Lost:
   • The resplendent sun rose over the horizon.
2. Shiny and colorful, and thus pleasing to the eye; splendid in appearance.
   • Soon after the arrival of Mrs. Campbell, dinner was announced by Abboye. He came into the drawing room resplendent in his gold-and-white turban. […] His cummerbund matched the turban in gold lines. 1927, F. E. Penny, chapter 4, in Pulling the Strings:
   • Some birds are feathered tufts of color so resplendent that they stand out brilliantly from their surroundings. 2024 October 31, Ari Daniel, “How parrot plumage gets its dazzling reds and yellows”, in NPR, archived from the original on 06 Apr 2025:
   • The peacock displayed its resplendent plumage.
3. (figuratively) Magnificent; glorious; splendid; marked by extraordinary excellence or beauty.
   • They celebrated their resplendent victory.
   • His career was resplendent with achievements.
   • The queen appeared in resplendent majesty.
   • The resplendent achievements of the English navy. 1849, Thomas Babington Macaulay, The History of England:
4. Exhibiting the property of resplendency in Peano arithmetic.

Forms

Deriveds

resplendently · unresplendent · resplendent quetzal · resplendency · resplendence

Relateds

resplend · resplendid · refulgent · splendid · splendorous · splendor

Synonyms

refulgent · gorgeous · brilliant · dazzling

Translations (48)

de glänzend (shining brilliantly) · es magnífico (magnificent, glorious) · cmn 燦爛 /灿烂 (shiny and colorful, pleasing to the eye) · ru блиста́ющий (shining brilliantly) · de prachtvoll (shiny and colorful, pleasing to the eye) · cs zářivý (shiny and colorful, pleasing to the eye) · pl błyszczący (shiny and colorful, pleasing to the eye) · fr magnifique (magnificent, glorious) · tr göz alıcı (shiny and colorful, pleasing to the eye) · pt magnífico (magnificent, glorious) · fi säteileväinen (shining brilliantly) · da strålende (shiny and colorful, pleasing to the eye) · ru блиста́тельный (shiny and colorful, pleasing to the eye) · cs oslnivý (shiny and colorful, pleasing to the eye) · fr resplendissant (shining brilliantly) · pt resplandecente (shiny and colorful, pleasing to the eye) · fi upea (magnificent, glorious) · fi loistava (shiny and colorful, pleasing to the eye) · mi wheriko (shiny and colorful, pleasing to the eye) · es espléndido (magnificent, glorious) · tr şaşaalı (shiny and colorful, pleasing to the eye) · cs skvoucí (shiny and colorful, pleasing to the eye) · de strahlend (shining brilliantly) · es resplandeciente (shining brilliantly) · ru велико́лепный (magnificent, glorious) · fr resplendissant (shiny and colorful, pleasing to the eye) · de glänzend (shiny and colorful, pleasing to the eye) · de herrlich (magnificent, glorious) · ru сия́ющий (shining brilliantly) · fr splendide (magnificent, glorious) · de prachtvoll (magnificent, glorious) · nl blinkend (shiny and colorful, pleasing to the eye) · bg бляскав (shiny and colorful, pleasing to the eye) · el αστραφτερός (shiny and colorful, pleasing to the eye) · nl sprankelend (shiny and colorful, pleasing to the eye) · cs třpytivý (shiny and colorful, pleasing to the eye) · es resplandeciente (shiny and colorful, pleasing to the eye) · ru блиста́тельный (magnificent, glorious) · pt resplendente (shiny and colorful, pleasing to the eye) · fi loistava (magnificent, glorious) · ar نَاضِر (shiny and colorful, pleasing to the eye) · hu ragyogó (shiny and colorful, pleasing to the eye) · pt esplêndido (magnificent, glorious) · de prächtig (shiny and colorful, pleasing to the eye) · sh blistav (shiny and colorful, pleasing to the eye) · fi loistava (shining brilliantly) · pt resplendente (shining brilliantly) · tr muhteşem (shiny and colorful, pleasing to the eye)