lumière des étoiles
feminine
The English phrase starlight is translated into French as lumière des étoiles. Wiktionary also lists lumière d'étoile.
Meaning: light emitted from stars other than the Sun (noun)
Ways to say it
| French | Note |
|---|---|
| lumière des étoiles | feminine |
| lumière d'étoile | feminine |
The term refers to the light emitted from stars other than the Sun.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase lumière des étoiles literally translates to light of the stars.
Which one should you use?
lumière des étoiles is used when referring to the collective light from many stars, which is the standard way to express the concept of starlight. In contrast, lumière d'étoile is used when referring to the light of a single star or using 'star' as a descriptive quality.
How does it change in a sentence?
Both forms are feminine nouns.
Did you know?
- The French word lumière is used as a synonym for 'knowledge' or 'enlightenment', as seen in the 18th century movement called le Siècle des Lumières.
- The word lumière stems from the Late Latin lūmināria, which was originally a neuter plural noun before it was reinterpreted as a feminine noun in Old French.
- The phrase lumière d'étoile is often avoided in scientific contexts in favor of rayonnement stellaire when discussing the actual physics of starlight.
Examples in context
- La théorie de la relativité générale a prédit la déviation de la lumière des étoiles par le Soleil.The general theory of relativity predicted the deflection of starlight by the Sun.This sentence is useful for illustrating how the general theory of relativity involves the deflection of lumière des étoiles.Tatoeba #9936528 by lbdx, translation #1853496 by marko
- La lumière des étoiles illumine le ciel nocturne.The starlight illuminates the night sky.
- La lumière des étoiles est très faible.The starlight is very faint.
- Nous observons la lumière des étoiles au télescope.We are observing the starlight through the telescope.
Example conversation
Manon and Hugo are looking at the night sky.
- ManonLe ciel est très pur ce soir, Hugo.The sky is very clear tonight, Hugo.
- HugoOui, la lumière des étoiles est vraiment intense.Yes, the starlight is really intense.
- ManonOn peut voir la Voie lactée clairement.We can see the Milky Way clearly.
- HugoC'est magique d'être ici avec toi, Manon.It is magical to be here with you, Manon.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “starlight” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries des, lumière, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
