French word

fulgurance

Pronunciation

IPA/fylgyʁɑ̃s/

Meaning

  • feminine nouninspiration

Example

Ce matin, j'ai eu une fulgurance et l'idée m'est venue tout de suite.

This morning, I had a flash of inspiration and the idea came to me right away.

Illustration for fulgurance (inspiration)

More examples

Lors d'une discussion, il a eu une fulgurance qui a changé son avis.

During a discussion, he had a flash of insight that changed his opinion.

Core concept

A sudden lightning-like flash in the mind that makes an insight appear fully formed.

Similar words

idée: A mental thought, concept, or proposed course of action.
intuition: An instinctive sense of something without relying on evidence or logic.

Definition in French

Idée soudaine et intense qui survient d'un seul coup.

Word origin

Fulgurance is built on French fulgurant and ultimately comes from Latin fulgur, 'lightning', a source shared with the verb fulgurer.

Usage tips

  • Fulgurance is feminine, so the article is une, and its elevated tone often makes une idée soudaine more natural in casual speech.

Other meanings

  • flashnoun
  • insightnoun

Opposites

  • banalitébanalitynoun
  • routineroutinenoun

Word lists with this word