A faint sign of hope, thought, memory, or understanding that gives a little clarity without becoming certain.
Examples
Cette réponse a laissé une lueur d'espoir.
That answer left a glimmer of hope.
Le rapport apporte quelques lueurs sur l'origine du problème.
The report offers a few clues about the origin of the problem.
Elle gardait une lueur de confiance malgré l'échec.
She kept a glimmer of confidence despite the failure.
À la lueur des faits récents, la décision paraît plus claire.
In the light of recent facts, the decision seems clearer.
Il n'avait qu'une lueur de souvenir de cette époque.
He had only a glimmer of memory from that time.
Une lueur de raison subsistait dans ses propos.
A trace of reason remained in his words.
Similar words
indice
signe
trace
apparence
espoir
intuition
notion
éclaircissement
Etymology
From Old French lueur or luur, from a late Latin form related to lucere, “to shine”.
FAQ
What does lueur mean?
lueur means a weak glow or brief flash, and figuratively a small sign of hope, thought, or understanding.
Is lueur masculine or feminine?
lueur is feminine, so French uses une lueur and la lueur.
What is lueur d’espoir?
lueur d’espoir means a glimmer of hope, a small sign that things may improve.
How is à la lueur de used?
À la lueur de means by the light of something in a literal scene, or in light of something when reasoning from facts.
What is the difference between lueur and éclat?
lueur is usually weak, soft, or passing, while éclat suggests brilliance, shine, or a sharper burst.
What are common translations of lueur?
Common translations include glow, gleam, glimmer, flash, hint, and trace, depending on context.
Comments & contributions
Know this word from another angle? Add a correction, a nuance, or a usage note. New posts go public after a quick review.
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Sleek Starling
Jul 12
I used to think it was masculine because of l'. une lueur, la lueur, dont trust the apostrophe
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Brave Loon
Jul 12
such a pretty word, but saying lu-eur at speed still defeats me
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Contribution
Olive Fox
Jul 3
For scene description, the verbs matter a lot. une lampe jette or projette une lueur blafarde is normal French. faire une lueur is the one that sounds translated from English to my ear.
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Pale Stork
Jul 5
blafarde is the adjective I keep meeting with this word, never learned it in class
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Ivory Ibex
Jun 26
With eyes, lueur usually points to a quick emotion that appears in the look, not eye brightness. une lueur de peur dans son regard works, but ses yeux ont une belle lueur sounds like you are describing a lamp.
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Early Plover
Jun 30
yes, in novels its often malice, folie, inquietude, that sort of thing
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Cloudy Sandpiper
Jun 23
The plural in les premieres lueurs du jour is idiomatic. It doesnt mean several separate lights, just the first grey light of dawn. la premiere lueur du jour feels more literal, like you actually saw one small glow.
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Early Gull
Jun 23
also aux premieres lueurs de l'aube, very book-ish but normal
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Zany Ostrich
Jun 15
For "in light of new facts", I would not teach a la lueur de as the default. It exists, but it still keeps a little image of dim light or slow clarification. In work French I reach for a la lumiere de cette information much faster.
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Pale Rabbit
Jun 16
oui, a la lueur de cette info sounds a bit too novelish to me