brilliant
brilliant
Pronunciation
Brilliant: /ˈbrɪliənt/
bril /brɪl/:
/b/: Voiced bilabial plosive
/r/: Voiced alveolar approximant
/ɪ/: Near-close near-front unrounded vowel
/l/: Voiced alveolar lateral approximant
liant /iənt/:
/i/: Close front unrounded vowel (often a glide /j/ in rapid speech, making it /jənt/)
/ə/: Schwa (mid-central vowel)
/n/: Voiced alveolar nasal
/t/: Voiceless alveolar plosive
Word Form Variations
Adjective: brilliant
Adverb: brilliantly
Noun: brilliance
Definitions, Synonyms and Antonyms
Adjective: brilliant
Possessing exceptional intelligence or talent; highly clever or skilled.
Synonyms: intelligent, smart, clever, gifted, ingenious, astute, sagacious
Antonyms: dull, unintelligent, foolish, inept, dim-witted
Radiating or reflecting light intensely; very bright and gleaming.
Synonyms: dazzling, sparkling, radiant, luminous, gleaming, lustrous, vivid
Antonyms: dim, dull, dark, murky, gloomy
Outstandingly successful or impressive; excellent in quality or execution.
Synonyms: superb, excellent, magnificent, splendid, exceptional, remarkable, outstanding
Antonyms: poor, mediocre, terrible, awful, substandard
Adverb: brilliantly
In a highly intelligent or clever manner.
Synonyms: intelligently, cleverly, skillfully, ingeniously, astutely
Antonyms: foolishly, unintelligently, ineptly
With great brightness or radiance.
Synonyms: dazzlingly, radiantly, brightly, luminously, gleamingly
Antonyms: dimly, dully, darkly
In an exceptionally successful or impressive way.
Synonyms: superbly, excellently, magnificently, splendidly, exceptionally, remarkably
Antonyms: poorly, terribly, awfully, shoddily
Noun: brilliance
Exceptional intelligence, talent, or mental acuity.
Synonyms: intelligence, cleverness, genius, sagacity, acumen, giftedness
Antonyms: dullness, foolishness, unintelligence, ineptitude
Intense brightness or radiance; a sparkling quality.
Synonyms: luminosity, radiance, sparkle, gleam, luster, vividness, dazzle
Antonyms: dimness, dullness, darkness, murkiness
Outstanding quality, excellence, or impressiveness.
Synonyms: excellence, superbness, magnificence, splendor, impressiveness, distinction
Antonyms: mediocrity, poorness, terribleness, inadequacy
Examples of Use
Books: "Sherlock Holmes, with his brilliant analytical mind, quickly deduced the culprit's identity from the seemingly disparate clues." (Arthur Conan Doyle, The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes)
Newspapers: "The young scientist's brilliant breakthrough in quantum physics promises to revolutionize computing as we know it." (The New York Times)
Online Publications: "Review: This indie game offers a brilliant blend of challenging puzzles and captivating storytelling." (IGN.com)
Entertainment Mediums (Film): In Oppenheimer, J. Robert Oppenheimer is often described as having a brilliant intellect, essential for his role in the Manhattan Project.
Entertainment Platforms (Television Series): "The season finale of Succession was absolutely brilliant, tying up all the loose ends in a truly unexpected way." (Viewer discussion on Reddit)
General Public Discourse: "That was a brilliant idea to meet earlier and avoid the traffic." (Casual conversation)
General Public Discourse: "Her performance in the play was brilliant; she commanded the stage with such presence." (Audience member comment)
Entertainment Mediums (Music): Critics often lauded Freddie Mercury's brilliant vocal range and stage presence.
10 Quotes Using Brilliant
"My most brilliant achievement was my ability to be able to persuade my wife to marry me." (Winston Churchill)
"If you can't dazzle them with brilliance, baffle them with bull." (W. C. Fields)
"One looks back with appreciation to the brilliant teachers, but with gratitude to those who touched our human feelings." (Carl Jung)
"Simplicity is the key to brilliance." (Bruce Lee)
"When a management with a reputation for brilliance tackles a business with a reputation for bad economics, it is the reputation of the business that remains intact." (Warren Buffett)
"You can have brilliant ideas, but if you can't get them across, your ideas won't get you anywhere." (Lee Iacocca)
"We are a nation of communities... a brilliant diversity spread like stars, like a thousand points of light in a broad and peaceful sky." (George H. W. Bush)
"Being brilliant is no great feat if you respect nothing." (Johann Wolfgang von Goethe)
"Hip-hop is about the brilliance of pavement poetry." (Michael Eric Dyson)
"The Austrians are brilliant people. They made the world believe that Hitler was a German and Beethoven an Austrian." (Billy Wilder)
Etymology
The word "brilliant" comes from the French word "briller," which means "to shine" or "to sparkle." This French word, in turn, has roots in the Italian word "brillare," also meaning "to shine."
Its first known use in English was around the early 17th century (specifically, the 1620s). At that time, its primary meaning was literally about something that was shining brightly or sparkling with light, like a diamond or a very bright star. Over time, its meaning expanded to include the idea of something being exceptionally clever or outstanding, much like a shining light of intelligence or talent.
Phrases + Idioms Containing Brilliant
Brilliant idea: A very clever or excellent thought or plan.
Brilliant mind: An exceptionally intelligent person.
Brilliant performance: An outstanding and highly skilled execution of a task, especially in entertainment or sports.
Brilliant move: A very smart or strategic action.
A stroke of brilliance: A sudden, exceptionally clever idea or action.
Shine brightly: To perform exceptionally well or to be very successful (using a synonym, but evoking the original meaning of "brilliant").
Sparkle with intelligence: To display great mental agility and quick wit (similar to "brilliant mind").
A flash of genius: A sudden, impressive display of exceptional intellect (often interchangeable with "a stroke of brilliance").
Vocabulary-Based Stories from SEA
Source Information
Definition of brilliant from The Academic Glossary at Self Exploration Academy, a Urikville Press Publication. © All rights reserved.
