brilliant
bril·liant/ˈbɹɪl.jənt/adjective, noun, verb
brilliant is spelled B-R-I-L-L-I-A-N-T, 2 syllables: bril·liant. The wrong spelling people search most is briliant: about 180 Bing searches a month in the United States (September 2025 to August 2026), about 1 in 42 of all searches for the word. Brilliant is an adjective meaning “Shining brightly”.
How many letters and syllables are in brilliant?
| Letters | 9: B-R-I-L-L-I-A-N-T |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: bril·liant |
| In writing | 35 times per million words; the 2,725th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | 1; the most searched, briliant, about 180 Bing searches a month (all of them) |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); Bing searches in the United States: the average month from September 2025 to August 2026 (Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, read September 30, 2026).
How do you spell brilliant?
Brilliant is spelled B-R-I-L-L-I-A-N-T. One wrong spelling is searched or written often enough to measure; together they are about 1 in 42 of the searches for brilliant in either form.
Bing searches in the United States: the average month from September 2025 to August 2026 (Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, read September 30, 2026). Wrong spellings are taken from Wiktionary entries tagged "misspelling" and its obsolete or nonstandard forms, Wikipedia's Lists of common misspellings and the codespell dictionary, then measured. The proofreader's marks show the change that corrects each one.
How common is brilliant?
Brilliant appears 35 times per million words in written English, the 2,725th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce brilliant?
- /ˈbɹɪl.jənt/
- /ˈbɹɪ.li.ənt/
- Australia /ˈbɹɪ(l)jənt/
Brilliant has 2 syllables, split bril·liant in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-brilliant.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with brilliant
Also written: brill.
Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
Forms of brilliant
- more brilliant comparative
- most brilliant superlative
- brilliants plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- brillianting participle, present
- brillianted participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does brilliant mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Shining brightly.
the brilliant lights along the promenade
- 2
Both bright and saturated.
butterflies with brilliant blue wings
- 3
Having a sharp, clear tone.
- 4
Of surpassing excellence; magnificent.
The actor's performance in the play was simply brilliant.
- 5
Highly intelligent.
She is a brilliant scientist.
- 6
UKGreat, wonderful.
https://youtu.be/aoag03mSuXQ?t=5139s He absolutely could have told us to get lost, and didn't. What a brilliant guy!
noun
- 1
A finely cut gemstone, especially a diamond, cut in a particular form with numerous facets so as to maximize light return through the top (called "table") of the stone.
- 2
datedThe size of type between excelsior and diamond, standardized as 4-point.
- 3
Most hummingbird species of the genus Heliodoxa.
- 4
A kind of cotton goods, figured on the weaving.
verb
- 1
To cut (a diamond) with many facets, to make it into a brilliant.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
How do you abbreviate brilliant?
Wiktionary records one abbreviation of brilliant: brill.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Brilliant in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | brillant , perle |
| German | strahlend , Diamant , brillant , Brillant |
| Portuguese | brilhante , claro |
| Spanish | brillante , perla |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.