luxuriant

[ luhg-zhoor-ee-uhnt, luhk-shoor- ]

adjective

1. abundant or lush in growth, as vegetation.

   Synonyms: teeming

2. producing abundantly, as soil; fertile; fruitful; productive:

   to settle in luxuriant country.

   Synonyms: prolific, fruitful

3. richly abundant, profuse, or superabundant.

   Synonyms: copious

4. florid, as imagery or ornamentation; lacking in restraint.

luxuriant

/ lʌɡˈzjʊərɪənt /

adjective

1. rich and abundant; lush
2. very elaborate or ornate
3. extremely productive or fertile

Usage

See luxurious

Derived Forms

• luxˈuriance, noun
• luxˈuriantly, adverb

Other Words From

• lux·uri·ant·ly adverb
• over·lux·uri·ant adjective
• over·lux·uri·ant·ly adverb
• unlux·uri·ant adjective
• unlux·uri·ant·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of luxuriant¹

1530–40; < Latin luxuriant- (stem of luxuriāns ), present participle of luxuriāre to be rank or immoderate. See luxury, -ant

Word History and Origins

Origin of luxuriant¹

C16: from Latin luxuriāns, present participle of luxuriāre to abound to excess

Example Sentences

In place of velvet and luxuriant lushness, there was fixating intensity and raw power.

From Los Angeles Times

She said they mow the lawn down to about 3 inches tall, but it grows back quickly into luxuriant waves.

From Los Angeles Times

In Sinaloa, Mexico, where luxuriant corn fields carpet the plains between the Sierra Madre mountains and the Gulf of California, short corn is already having an impact.

From Science Magazine

Their paws are wreathed in luxuriant tufts of fur that keep them from sinking in deep snow.

From Seattle Times

Corrosive brasses and heated strings enlivened the Respighi’s first movement, and gray-toned woodwinds, transparent violins, and luxuriant cellos and basses colored the second.

From New York Times

Related Words

• lush
• opulent
• sumptuous