luminescence
/ˌluː.məˈnɛs.əns/
luminescence means any emission of light that cannot be attributed merely to the temperature of the emitting body.
luminescence is pronounced /ˌluː.məˈnɛs.əns/.
Why “luminescence” is a great word
Any emission of light that cannot be attributed merely to the temperature of the emitting body. From Latin lumen ("light") + English -escence (denoting a state or process), coined in 1884 by German physicist Eilhard Wiedemann. Unlike "incandescence," which is fire's own forge-glow of heat made visible, or the vague, all-encompassing "glow," luminescence is light born cold. It is the spectral blue of a jellyfish pulsing in a dark sea, the sudden, silent flash of a firefly in a summer hedgerow, and the pale authority of a watch face in absolute darkness—a quiet theft of illumination from the void, light as intention rather than consequence.
Etymology
From Latin lumen + English -escence.
noun
- Any emission of light that cannot be attributed merely to the temperature of the emitting body.
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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