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Community Comment

Words of the day — lackluster

Good morning, Netizens...

February 07, 2013

Words of the Day

  • lackluster
  • audio pronunciation
  • \LAK-luss-ter\
  • DEFINITION
  •  

adjective

: lacking in sheen, brilliance, or vitality : dull, mediocre
  • EXAMPLES
  •  

In spite of its owner's hard work, the little shop was forced to close due to lackluster sales.

"After a lackluster first half, the Cabrillo girls water polo team began to find the net and pulled away from Paso Robles, on the way to a 14-9 non-league win at the Cabrillo high pool." — From an article by Brad Memberto in the Santa Maria Times (California), December 13, 2012

  • DID YOU KNOW?
  •  

In its earliest uses, "lackluster" (also spelled "lacklustre") usually described the eyes or face, as in "a lackluster stare." Later, it came to describe other things whose sheen had been removed; Charles Dickens, in his 1843 novel Martin Chuzzlewit, writes of the faded image of the dragon on the sign outside a village alehouse: "many a wintry storm of rain, snow, sleet, and hail, had changed his colour from a gaudy blue to a faint lack-lustre shade of grey." In addition to "a glow or sheen," "luster" can refer to a superficial attractiveness or appearance of excellence; it follows that "lackluster" is often used as a synonym for "unspectacular," as in our examples.

From Merriam-Webster Online at www.Merriam-Webster.com.

 

Dave



Spokesman-Review readers blog about news and issues in Spokane written by Dave Laird.