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Incandescent first came to light in the English language toward the end of the 1700s, at a time when scientific experiments involving heat and light were being conducted on an increasingly frequent basis. An object that glowed at a high temperature (such as a piece of coal) was deemed incandescent. By the mid-1800s, the incandescent lamp—aka the lightbulb—had been invented; it contains a filament which gives off light when heated by an electric current. Figurative uses of incandescent soon followed, and today someone with a brilliant way with words may be said to have an “incandescent wit,” while someone positively beaming with joy may possess an “incandescent smile.”
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“Incandescent.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/incandescent. Accessed 8 Jul. 2026.
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