Did you know?
Lackluster may describe things that are dull, but the word itself is no yawn. In its earliest uses in the early 17th century, lackluster (also spelled lacklustre) usually described eyes that were dull or lacking in brightness, as in “a lackluster stare.” Later, it came to describe other things whose sheen had been removed; Charles Dickens, in his 1844 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.” These days lackluster is broadly used to describe anything blah, from a spiritless sensation to a humdrum hump day.
Examples of lackluster in a Sentence
Liz Napolitano, CNBC, 4 Apr. 2026
After a lackluster game in the second round against UCLA, Reed stepped up again last weekend with 46 points in wins over Michigan State and Duke.
—Josh Dubow, Chicago Tribune, 1 Apr. 2026
Long gone are the days when lackluster buffet food was the highlight of an all-inclusive vacation.
—Carley Rojas Avila, Travel + Leisure, 1 Apr. 2026
After a lackluster game in the second round against UCLA, Reed stepped up again this past weekend with 46 points in wins over Michigan State and Duke.
—ABC News, 31 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for lackluster
Cite this Entry
“Lackluster.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lackluster. Accessed 5 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
lackluster
adjective
