Brilliant in Different Languages
Discover 'Brilliant' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
Brilliant is a word that holds great significance and cultural importance across the globe. Derived from the Latin word 'brillare' meaning 'to shine', the term 'brilliant' is often used to describe anything that shines or sparkles, as well as people who possess exceptional intelligence or talent. Throughout history, brilliant minds have shaped the course of humanity, from groundbreaking scientific discoveries to influential works of art.
Moreover, the word 'brilliant' has been adopted and translated into various languages, reflecting its global appeal and cultural significance. For instance, in Spanish, 'brillante' is the translation, while in French, it's 'brillant'. In German, the word is 'brillant', and in Japanese, it's 'ブリリアント (buririanto)'. Understanding the translations of 'brilliant' in different languages can help us appreciate the cultural nuances and linguistic diversity of the world around us.
So, whether you're a language enthusiast, a cultural explorer, or simply curious, read on to discover the various translations of the word 'brilliant' in different languages.
Brilliant
Brilliant in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | briljant | ||
| The Afrikaans word "briljant" derives from the Dutch word "briljant" which originally meant "shining". It has later taken on the connotation of "outstanding" or "very intelligent". | |||
| Amharic | ጎበዝ | ||
| The word "ጎበዝ" (brilliant) in Amharic also means "the eye of a needle". | |||
| Hausa | m | ||
| In Hausa, "m" can also mean "to be great" or "to be distinguished". | |||
| Igbo | amamiihe | ||
| The word "amamiihe" also means "shining" or "radiant" in Igbo. | |||
| Malagasy | mamirapiratra | ||
| "Mamirapiratra" is thought to derive from "mira" meaning "beautiful" and "piratra" meaning "very" or "much". | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | waluntha | ||
| The word "waluntha" is derived from the Proto-Bantu root "-luntha" meaning "to be white or shiny." | |||
| Shona | penya | ||
| "Penya" can also mean "a big black spider" or "a person with a very dark complexion" in Shona. | |||
| Somali | cajiib ah | ||
| The word "cajiib ah" derives from the Arabic word "ʿajīb" (عجيب), meaning "wonderful" or "strange". | |||
| Sesotho | khanyang | ||
| The word "khanyang" also means "to show off" or "to brag" in Sesotho. | |||
| Swahili | kipaji | ||
| The word 'kipaji' in Swahili can also mean 'talent' or 'ability'. | |||
| Xhosa | krelekrele | ||
| In Xhosa, 'krelekrele' also means 'clear, bright, or shining' and is related to the word 'krala', meaning 'enclosure' or 'kraal'. | |||
| Yoruba | ologo | ||
| In Yoruba, "ologo" can also refer to a type of traditional Yoruba drum or the head priest of a religious sect | |||
| Zulu | okukhazimulayo | ||
| "Okukhazimulayo" also means "shining" or "to give light" in Zulu. | |||
| Bambara | kunkɛnɛma | ||
| Ewe | si nya nu | ||
| Kinyarwanda | byiza | ||
| Lingala | kongenga | ||
| Luganda | amagezi | ||
| Sepedi | bohlale | ||
| Twi (Akan) | adenim | ||
Brilliant in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | متألق | ||
| متألق has additional meanings such as luminous, shining, and resplendent. | |||
| Hebrew | מַברִיק | ||
| The word "מַברִיק" can also mean "polishing" or "shining" in Hebrew. | |||
| Pashto | په زړه پوری | ||
| The word "په زړه پوری" ("brilliant") in Pashto can also be used to describe something that is "very beautiful" or "very good". | |||
| Arabic | متألق | ||
| متألق has additional meanings such as luminous, shining, and resplendent. | |||
Brilliant in Western European Languages
| Albanian | brilante | ||
| In Albanian, the word "brilante" also has the alternate meaning of "diamond" or "gemstone." | |||
| Basque | bikaina | ||
| Although 'bikaina' means 'brilliant' in Basque, it also relates to 'life' and 'soul'. | |||
| Catalan | brillant | ||
| "Brillant" in the language Catalan comes from the French "brillant" and also means "sparkling". | |||
| Croatian | sjajno | ||
| The noun 'sjaj' denotes brilliance and the act of shining, and also refers to a precious metal or its imitation. | |||
| Danish | strålende | ||
| Strålende originates from the old Norse word "stråla", meaning "to radiate or shine". | |||
| Dutch | briljant | ||
| The Dutch word "briljant" comes from the Old French "briller", meaning "to shine". | |||
| English | brilliant | ||
| The word 'brilliant' originally meant either 'shining' or 'piercing' and could apply to the sun, a diamond, intellect, wit, an idea, a performance, a career, a future, anything that shines or captivates. | |||
| French | brillant | ||
| In French, 'brillant' can also mean 'shiny' or 'sparkling', referencing the glittering quality of gemstones or certain materials. | |||
| Frisian | briljant | ||
| The Frisian word "briljant" can also mean "spectacle" or "glasses" in English. | |||
| Galician | brillante | ||
| A "brillante" is a precious stone such as a diamond in Galician. In Brazil, it also means "very beautiful" when used figuratively. | |||
| German | brillant | ||
| The German word "brillant" is derived from the Old French word "briller" meaning "to shine" and is related to the Old High German word "berht" meaning "bright". | |||
| Icelandic | ljómandi | ||
| The word 'ljómandi' in Icelandic may also mean 'resounding', 'shining' or 'lustrous. | |||
| Irish | thar cionn | ||
| Thar cionn is derived from the Old Irish word for "head," and also means "in front of" or "before." | |||
| Italian | brillante | ||
| "Brillante" is also used in Italian to mean "shining" or "sparkling". | |||
| Luxembourgish | genial | ||
| In Luxembourgish, "genial" means "nice" or "friendly". | |||
| Maltese | brillanti | ||
| The Maltese "brillanti" also means "diamond" and derives from the French "brillant". | |||
| Norwegian | strålende | ||
| The word 'strålende' can also mean 'radiant' or 'shining'. | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | brilhante | ||
| The word "brilhante" also means "shiny" or "sparkling" in Portuguese. | |||
| Scots Gaelic | sgoinneil | ||
| The word "sgoinneil" (brilliant) is also used to describe "something that has been sharpened" in Scots Gaelic. | |||
| Spanish | brillante | ||
| The Spanish word "brillante" comes from the French word "brillant" meaning "sparkling" or "lustrous." | |||
| Swedish | lysande | ||
| The word 'lysande' means shining, dazzling, or brilliant. | |||
| Welsh | gwych | ||
| The word "gwych" is derived from the Latin word "viridis," meaning "green." | |||
Brilliant in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | бліскучы | ||
| The word "бліскучы" in Belarusian comes from the Proto-Slavic word "*blesti", meaning "to shine". | |||
| Bosnian | briljantno | ||
| The Bosnian word 'briljantno' is derived from Turkish 'parlak', meaning bright and shiny. | |||
| Bulgarian | брилянтен | ||
| The same word "брилянтен" in Bulgarian also refers to a rare type of cut of diamonds with 57 or 58 facets, also known as "round brilliant". | |||
| Czech | brilantní | ||
| The Czech word "brilantní" is derived from the French word "brillant," and it also has the alternate meaning of "sharp." | |||
| Estonian | hiilgav | ||
| The word "hiilgav" also means "glowing" or "radiant". | |||
| Finnish | loistava | ||
| The word "loistava" can also mean "excellent" or "magnificent" in Finnish. | |||
| Hungarian | ragyogó | ||
| The Hungarian word "ragyogó" (meaning "brilliant") is derived from the verb "ragyogni" (meaning "to shine"), which is of Proto-Indo-European origin and cognate with the English word "radiant." | |||
| Latvian | izcili | ||
| The word "izcili" also has the alternate meaning of "exquisite" in Latvian. | |||
| Lithuanian | genialus | ||
| The Lithuanian word "genialus" is derived from the Latin word "ingenium", meaning "inborn talent" or "natural ability". | |||
| Macedonian | брилијантен | ||
| The Macedonian word "брилијантен" also means "gemstone", stemming from the French word "brillant" meaning "shiny". | |||
| Polish | znakomity | ||
| The word "znakomity" derives from the word "znać" (to know) and originally meant "well-known" or "distinguished". It is also used ironically to describe someone or something as "brilliant" or "wonderful" in a sarcastic or dismissive way. | |||
| Romanian | sclipitor | ||
| Sclipitor comes from the Latin word "scintilla', meaning "spark". | |||
| Russian | блестящий | ||
| In Russian, the word "блестящий" (brilliant) comes from the word "блеск" (shine), indicating that "блестящий" signifies not only intellectual brilliance but also outward radiance and splendor. | |||
| Serbian | сјајно | ||
| The word "сјајно" also means "very well" in Serbian, e.g. "сјајно је прошла проба" (the audition went very well). | |||
| Slovak | geniálny | ||
| In Slovak, "geniálny" also means "native". | |||
| Slovenian | briljantno | ||
| The Slovenian word "briljantno" can also mean "diamond" or "cut glass". | |||
| Ukrainian | блискучий | ||
| The Ukrainian word "блискучий" also means "close" or "near", and comes from the Proto-Slavic word *bliskъ, meaning "near". | |||
Brilliant in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | উজ্জ্বল | ||
| The word "উজ্জ্বল" (ujjwal) in Bengali originates from the Sanskrit word "उज्ज्वल" (ujjvala), meaning "to shine" or "to be bright". | |||
| Gujarati | તેજસ્વી | ||
| The word "तेजस्वी" can also mean "sun" or "fire" in Sanskrit. | |||
| Hindi | प्रतिभाशाली | ||
| The word "प्रतिभाशाली" can also refer to someone who is intelligent, resourceful, or creative. | |||
| Kannada | ಅದ್ಭುತ | ||
| The word 'ಅದ್ಭುತ' (adbhut) can also mean 'wonderful', 'astonishing' or 'extraordinary' in Kannada. | |||
| Malayalam | ബുദ്ധിമാനായ | ||
| Marathi | हुशार | ||
| The Marathi word "हुशार" (huśār) is derived from the Arabic word "هوشيار" (hūshyār), which means "awake" or "alert". It can also mean "clever" or "intelligent" in some contexts. | |||
| Nepali | शानदार | ||
| The word "शानदार" is derived from the Persian word "שאן دهر" (shaan-e-dahr), meaning "the glory of the age". | |||
| Punjabi | ਹੁਸ਼ਿਆਰ | ||
| The word 'ਹੁਸ਼ਿਆਰ' can also mean clever or sharp, and derives from the Persian verb 'hush-dar' meaning 'with sense'. | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | දීප්තිමත් | ||
| The word "දීප්තිමත්" in Sinhala means brilliant and originates from Sanskrit "dīptimat" which refers to brightness, light, or brilliance. | |||
| Tamil | புத்திசாலி | ||
| Telugu | తెలివైన | ||
| Urdu | شاندار | ||
| "شاندار" also means "magnificent" or "glorious" in Urdu. | |||
Brilliant in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 辉煌 | ||
| 辉煌 (huīháng) can also mean "great" or "magnificent". | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 輝煌 | ||
| 輝煌 originated from a character that meant 'the sun' and was used to refer to the brilliance of the sun before being adopted to mean radiant, splendid, or magnificent. | |||
| Japanese | 鮮やかさ | ||
| The kanji "鮮" in the word "鮮やかさ" originally meant "fish" and later came to mean "fresh" and "beautiful" in the context of food. | |||
| Korean | 훌륭한 | ||
| The word "훌륭한" can also mean "excellent" or "outstanding". | |||
| Mongolian | гайхалтай | ||
| The word "гайхалтай" is derived from the root "гайх", meaning "to be surprised" or "to be astonished". | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | တောက်ပ | ||
| The word "တောက်ပ" (tauk pa) in Myanmar (Burmese) is derived from the Pali word "tapati" meaning "to shine" or "to burn". It also has the alternate meaning of "fiery" or "bright red". | |||
Brilliant in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | cemerlang | ||
| "Cemulang" in old Sundanese language originally meant "the sun". | |||
| Javanese | sarwa | ||
| "Sarwa" also means "all" or "whole" in Javanese. | |||
| Khmer | អស្ចារ្យ | ||
| The word "អស្ចារ្យ" (brilliant) in Khmer is derived from the Sanskrit word "अस्त्र" (weapon), and also means "strange" or "wonderful". | |||
| Lao | ຮຸ່ງເຮືອງ | ||
| Malay | cemerlang | ||
| The word "cemerlang" also has the meaning of shining or reflecting, as well as a metaphorical meaning of being prominent or distinguished. | |||
| Thai | ยอดเยี่ยม | ||
| "ยอดเยี่ยม" (brilliant) derives from the Sanskrit word "uttama" meaning "uppermost" or "best." | |||
| Vietnamese | xuất sắc | ||
| Xuất sắc (brilliant) means to stand out from the crowd, with its root word “xuất” (to exit) and “sắc” (color). | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | napakatalino | ||
Brilliant in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | parlaq | ||
| "Parlaq" in Azerbaijani also means "bright" or "shining". | |||
| Kazakh | тамаша | ||
| "Тамаша" can also mean "a show" or "a spectacle" in Kazakh. | |||
| Kyrgyz | сонун | ||
| The word "сонун" in Kyrgyz can also mean "beautiful" or "good-looking." | |||
| Tajik | олиҷаноб | ||
| The word "олиҷаноб" can also mean "shining" or "radiant" in Tajik. | |||
| Turkmen | ajaýyp | ||
| Uzbek | yorqin | ||
| The word "yorqin" in Uzbek can also mean "clear" or "sharp". | |||
| Uyghur | پارلاق | ||
Brilliant in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | ʻōlinolino | ||
| ʻŌlinolino may come from the word ʻōlino, meaning "smooth" or "fine". | |||
| Maori | ngingila | ||
| The word "ngingila" also refers to a type of fish known for its iridescent scales. | |||
| Samoan | susulu | ||
| In Samoan the word "susulu" can also mean "to shine" or "to glow". | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | napakatalino | ||
| "Napakatalino" comes from the word "talino" (intellect) with the prefix "napaka-" (very), indicating a high or remarkable level of brightness. | |||
Brilliant in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | llijukiri | ||
| Guarani | overáva | ||
Brilliant in International Languages
| Esperanto | brila | ||
| The word "brila" in Esperanto is derived from the French word "briller", meaning "to shine". It can also be used figuratively to mean "excellent" or "outstanding". | |||
| Latin | praeclarum | ||
| "Praeclarum" can also mean "very clear, conspicuous, or renowned." | |||
Brilliant in Others Languages
| Greek | λαμπρός | ||
| In Byzantine Greek, "λαμπρός" could refer to a high-ranking official or a wealthy landowner. | |||
| Hmong | ci ntsa iab | ||
| The Hmong word "ci ntsa iab" also means "clear", "bright", and "glowing". | |||
| Kurdish | birqanî | ||
| The word "birqanî" is said to be derived from the Persian word "barq", meaning "lightning". | |||
| Turkish | parlak | ||
| The word "parlak" in Turkish originally meant "shining" or "glowing" and was used to describe the appearance of the sun, moon, and stars. | |||
| Xhosa | krelekrele | ||
| In Xhosa, 'krelekrele' also means 'clear, bright, or shining' and is related to the word 'krala', meaning 'enclosure' or 'kraal'. | |||
| Yiddish | בריליאַנט | ||
| "בריליאַנט" (brilliant) in Yiddish can also mean "diamond" or "very clear (gemstone)" | |||
| Zulu | okukhazimulayo | ||
| "Okukhazimulayo" also means "shining" or "to give light" in Zulu. | |||
| Assamese | উজ্বল | ||
| Aymara | llijukiri | ||
| Bhojpuri | बहुत खूब | ||
| Dhivehi | ވަރަށް ރަނގަޅު | ||
| Dogri | बुधवान | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | napakatalino | ||
| Guarani | overáva | ||
| Ilocano | naglaing | ||
| Krio | brayt | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | ژیر | ||
| Maithili | तेज | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯍꯩ ꯁꯤꯡꯕ | ||
| Mizo | vengva | ||
| Oromo | kan sammuun banamaa | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ଉଜ୍ଜ୍ୱଳ | ||
| Quechua | llipipiq | ||
| Sanskrit | मेधावी | ||
| Tatar | якты | ||
| Tigrinya | ጎበዝ | ||
| Tsonga | vutlharhi | ||