Etymologically
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brillant

Etymology and origin of the French word brillant

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Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
1564, Jean Thierry
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
French brillant
English brilliant

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /bʁi.jɑ̃/[1]

Forms

brillant (feminine brillante, masculine plural brillants, feminine plural brillantes)[1]

Etymology

It is the present participle of briller (“to shine”) used as an adjective and a noun.[2][3][4][5] The verb (1559) is borrowed from Italian brillare (“to flutter; to sparkle”), a word of obscure origin: Rey thinks it most likely imitative, like Italian “prillare” “to spin”, from a stem “*pir(l)-” “to move about, turn”, the optical sense coming from the trembling twinkle of stars, Bloch and Wartburg derive it from Latin bēryllus (“beryl”), “to shine like beryl”.[3][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

Jean Thierry's French–Latin dictionary (1564) has the adjective, “that shines”.[2][5]

Semantic evolution

From the start it was also used figuratively of a person who succeeds and is admired, and of things that stand out (une brillante carrière, un esprit brillant).[3][7] As a noun le brillant was the quality of what shines (Régnier, 1608: le brillant de mainte pierrerie) and figuratively brilliance, show (Corneille, 1636, faux brillant).[2][3] In 1671 (La Fontaine) un brillant was a diamond cut in facets, now a round diamond of 57 or 58 facets.[2][7][8] Derivatives include brillamment (1583), brillanter (1740), brillantine (1823) and brillance (1928, after English brilliancy).[3][6]

Timeline

  • 1559 – Briller.[3]
  • 1564 – The adjective, in Thierry.[2]
  • 1583 – Brillamment.[3]
  • 1608 – Le brillant in Régnier.[2]
  • 1636 – Figurative noun, in Corneille.[2]
  • 1671 – A cut diamond, in La Fontaine.[2]
  • 1823 – Brillantine.[6]
  • 1928 – Brillance.[3]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. Shining, shiny, bright: des yeux brillants, des cheveux brillants.[7][1]
  2. Brilliant, outstanding: un brillant avenir, un élève brillant, pas brillant: not great.[7][5]

Noun

  1. Shine, lustre: le brillant des chromes, (figurative) sparkle, glitter.[8][7]
  2. A brilliant (diamond): une bague de brillants.[8][2]
  3. Brillant à lèvres: lip gloss.[7][8]

Word family

  • brillamment
  • brillanter
  • brillantine
  • brillance
  • briller
  • béryl

References

  1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Trésor de la langue française informatisé (2004), ATILF – CNRS & Université de Lorraine, atilf.fr/tlfi; electronic version of Imbs, Paul; Quemada, Bernard, eds. (1971–1994), Trésor de la langue française, Paris: CNRS / Gallimard
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  4. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  5. ^ a b c Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  6. ^ a b c Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  7. ^ a b c d e f Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  8. ^ a b c d Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)

Borrowed into

Cite this entry

“Brillant.” Etymologically, 17 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/fr/brillant. Accessed 17 Oct. 2026.

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