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HOW TO PRONOUNCE

luster

/ˈlʌstɚ/

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American Pronunciation Guide · 0:47
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What does luster mean?

noun

  1. The ability or condition of shining with reflected light; sheen, gleam, gloss, sparkle, shine, etc.
  2. The way in which the surface of any particular type of mineral reflects light differently from other minerals, which is helpful in telling minerals apart.
  3. (figuratively) Shining light from within, luminosity, brightness, shine.
More meanings (22)

noun

  1. (figuratively) Shining beauty, splendor, attractiveness or attraction.
  2. (figuratively) Shining fame, renown, glory.
  3. (figuratively) Polish, social refinement.
  4. (literary) Any shining body or thing.
  5. A piece of glass added to a light (especially a chandelier) to increase its luster.
  6. An ornamental light providing luster, especially a chandelier.
  7. A substance that imparts luster to a surface, such as polish, gloss, plumbago, glaze, etc.
  8. The layer of an object that imparts luster, chiefly with regard to ceramics.
  9. Clipping of lusterware: highly lustrous ceramics.
  10. A kind of lustrous fabric with a wool weft and cotton, linen, or silk warp, chiefly used for women's dresses.
  11. Alternative form of lustrum: A five-year period, especially (historical) in Roman contexts.
  12. (obsolete) A glory, an act or thing that imparts fame or renown.
  13. (archaic) One who lusts, one inflamed with lust.
  14. (obsolete) Synonym of den: a dwelling-place in a wilderness, especially for animals.

verb

  1. To coat with a lustrous material or glaze, to impart physical luster to an object.
  2. (archaic) To have luster, to gleam, to shine.
  3. (archaic) To gain luster, to become lustrous.
  4. (obsolete) To make illustrious or attractive, to distinguish.
  5. (obsolete) To shed light on, to illustrate, to show.
  6. (obsolete) Synonym of purify, to ritually cleanse or renew.
  7. (obsolete) Synonym of look, to look over, to survey.

proper noun

  1. A surname from German.

Definitions regrouped for readability · CC BY-SA 4.0

IPA pronunciation

/ˈlʌstɚ/

Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0

Pronunciation varies by speaker and region. About these dictionary pronunciations.

In the pages of books

See this word in context.

Their metallic luster, generally a golden green, rivals that of our finest beetles, the Rosechafers, Buprestes and leaf beetles.
Jean-Henri FabreThe Life of the Fly; With Which are Interspersed Some Chapters of AutobiographyTranslated by Alexander Teixeira de MattosProject Gutenberg ebook #3422
There is almost no exception to this rule, though sometimes the ornamentation is of a brownish color with a metallic luster.
Emory Adams AllenThe Prehistoric World; Or, Vanished RacesProject Gutenberg ebook #2873
More book examples (3)
Nothing, think you, but the fruit harvest and the vintage is in the fiery, flushing luster of Antares and the ominous Scorpion?
Thomas H. Burgoyne; Belle M. WagnerThe Light of Egypt; Or, The Science of the Soul and the Stars — Volume 2Project Gutenberg ebook #1650
When private men shall act with original views, the luster will be transferred from the actions of kings to those of gentlemen.
Ralph Waldo EmersonEssays by Ralph Waldo EmersonProject Gutenberg ebook #16643
But just for a moment their eyes met, and, behind all the luster of Ruby’s, Anne saw something that made her heart ache.
L. M. (Lucy Maud) MontgomeryAnne of the IslandProject Gutenberg ebook #51