brilliant
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brilliant
Outstanding, excellent, or ingenious. Used to describe a performance, an idea, or a person's intelligence as exceptionally good.
Sie hatte eine brillante Idee, wie man das Problem lösen könnte.
She had a brilliant idea for how to solve the problem.
The context makes the meaning clear: If 'brillant' (brilliant) refers to something abstract such as an idea, a performance, or a person, it means 'ingenious' or 'excellent.' If it refers to something physical such as a stone or light, it means 'sparkling.'
Der Redner hielt einen brillanten Vortrag über künstliche Intelligenz.
The speaker gave a brilliant lecture on artificial intelligence.
'Brillant' (brilliant) belongs to an elevated register. It is a strong, expressive word and is used less often than simpler adjectives such as 'sehr gut' (very good) or 'toll' (great).
Das war eine brillante Lösung für ein kompliziertes Problem.
That was a brilliant solution to a complicated problem.
In the meaning 'hervorragend' (outstanding), 'brillant' (brilliant) is often combined with abstract nouns. Typical examples are: 'eine brillante Idee' (a brilliant idea), 'ein brillanter Plan' (a brilliant plan), 'eine brillante Analyse' (a brilliant analysis), or 'ein brillanter Kopf' (a very intelligent person).
Die Detektivin löste den Fall mit einer brillanten Analyse der Hinweise.
The detective solved the case with a brilliant analysis of the clues.
In the meaning 'funkelnd' (sparkling), 'brillant' (brilliant/sparkling) often describes the effect of light. Common combinations are: 'brillantes Licht' (brilliant light), 'brillanter Glanz' (brilliant shine), 'brillante Farben' (brilliant colors), or 'ein brillanter Stern' (a brilliant star).
Das Feuerwerk malte brillante Farben an den Nachthimmel.
The fireworks painted brilliant colors across the night sky.
brilliant / awesome
'genial' and 'brillant' can both express that an idea, achievement, or person is exceptionally good. 'genial' often sounds creative and inventive; in everyday language, it can also simply mean 'awesome'. 'brillant' sounds a bit more elevated and fits especially well with very clever achievements, strong arguments, or high quality. In addition, 'brillant' can also literally mean 'shining' or 'sparkling', for example with light or jewelry. There is a risk of confusion because both words can seem very similar when talking about ideas and achievements. But pay attention: for shine or sparkle, you say 'brillant', not 'genial'.
Die Präsentation war brillant und hat alle im Raum überzeugt.
The presentation was brilliant and convinced everyone in the room.
Meine Kollegin findet die Lösung genial, weil sie uns viel Zeit spart.
My colleague thinks the solution is brilliant because it saves us a lot of time.