Luxuriant

a. Also 6 erron. luxurient. [ad. L. luxuriant-em, pres. pple. of luxuriāre to grow rank, f. luxuria LUXURY.]

  1.  Producing abundantly, prolific. Now rare.

c. 1540.  trans. Pol. Verg. Eng. Hist. (Camden), I. 19. The grownde is luxurient and frutefull.

1712.  Pope, Vertumnus, 10. The growth of the luxuriant year.

1748.  Anson’s Voy., I. v. 44. The soil of the Island is truly luxuriant.

1756–7.  trans. Keysler’s Trav. (1760), III. 142. The country still retains a luxuriant fertility.

1794.  S. Williams, Vermont, 131. The soil was … fertile and luxuriant.

1877.  Mar. M. Grant, Sun-Maid, ii. It was luxuriant as the valleys of Devon.

  † transf.  1650.  Bulwer, Anthropomet., Pref. Here the luxuriant Chin quite down is mown.

  2.  Of plants, etc.: Growing profusely, exuberant, rank. † Of flesh: Growing to excess (obs.).

1661.  Lovell, Hist. Anim. & Min., 230. If stamped and applied they compresse luxuriant flesh.

a. 1667.  Cowley, Death Mrs. K. Philips, iv. Wit’s like a Luxuriant Vine.

1697.  Dryden, Virg. Georg., I. 166. [The Ploughman] Sends in his feeding Flocks betimes t’ invade The rising bulk of the luxuriant Blade.

1749.  Fielding, Tom Jones, IV. ii. Her hair … was so luxuriant, that it reached her middle.

1791.  Cowper, Iliad, XVII. 64. The luxuriant olive by a swain Rear’d in some solitude.

1835.  Miss Mitford, in L’Estrange, Life, III. iii. 35. The dark nasturtium is a fine colour, and very luxuriant.

1846.  J. Baxter, Libr. Pract. Agric. (ed. 4), II. 365. The tops of white turnips are long and luxuriant at the commencement of the season.

1883.  E. Kay Robinson, in 19th Cent., May, 763. Throughout the animal world strong and luxuriant hair is accompanied by regular and durable teeth.

  b.  spec. in Bot. (see quots. 1760, 1852).

1760.  J. Lee, Introd. Bot., I. xx. (1765), 53. A flower is said to be luxuriant, when some of the Parts of Fructification are augmented in Number, and others thereby excluded.

1776–96.  Withering, Brit. Plants (ed. 3), I. 251. When of a luxuriant growth, the numbers often increase, especially the number of the pistils.

1852.  Henslow, Dict. Bot. Terms, Luxuriant.… Generally applied where a superabundance of nutriment causes the organs of nutrition to be more developed than those of fructification.

  3.  In immaterial applications. a. Of invention, genius, fancy, etc.: Exuberantly productive. Of speech, action, etc.: Abundant, profuse, excessive. Of ornamentation: Excessively rich or florid.

1625.  Bacon, Ess., Youth & Age (Arb.), 263. A fluent and Luxuriant Speech … becomes Youth well, but not Age.

1641.  ‘Smectymnuus,’ Vind. Answ., iii. 53. If hee will give lesse scope to his luxuriant pen, speak more cautiously.

1675.  Traherne, Chr. Ethics, 443. Mistake not these things for arbitrary flourishes of luxuriant fancy.

1689.  Swift, Ode to Temple, Wks. 1755, IV. I. 244. How is the muse luxuriant grown.

1765.  Blackstone, Comm., I. 87. Restraining it [the common law] where it was too lax and luxuriant.

1780.  A. Young, Tour Irel., II. xvii. 75. The irish jig, which they can dance with a most luxuriant expression.

1799.  Med. Jrnl., I. 43. Brown was a luxuriant genius.

1848.  Mrs. Jameson, Sacr. & Leg. Art (1850), 91. The vivid colour, the luxuriant architecture remind us of Paul Veronese.

1855.  Bain, Senses & Int., III. i. § 55 (1864), 425. A luxuriant imagination implies the facility of retaining scenes of every description.

1882–3.  Schaff, Encycl. Relig. Knowl., II. 1200. Rules were given with respect to the luxuriant ornamentation of the churches.

  † b.  Excessively prosperous. Obs.

1654.  trans. Scudery’s Curia Pol., 76. Luxuriant and wanton times cause Princes like iron to rust for want of use.

1712.  Steele, Spect., No. 330, ¶ 3. By many Losses … reduced from a very luxuriant Trade and Credit to very narrow Circumstances.

1766.  Goldsm., Vic. W., xxix. The luxuriant great ones of the world shall no more tread us to the earth.

  † c.  Of a disease: Abundantly prevalent. Obs.

1656.  J. Smith, Pract. Physick, 24. Arthritis that is vagrant is Scorbutical…. The parts affected are the Nerves; because it is very luxuriant in the back and the loins.

  ¶ 4.  Misused for: LUXURIOUS.

1671.  Phil. Trans., VI. 2129. Being the most delicious and luxuriant Cider … that ever I knew.

1885.  C. Gibbon, Hard Knot, I. v. 69. It was a splendid apartment,… luxuriant to a degree.

  Hence Luxuriantly adv., † Luxuriantness.

1725.  C. Pitt, Vida’s Art of Poetry, III. 109.

1775.  Ash, Luxuriantness.

1786.  Burns, Ep. to a Young Friend, vi. The sacred lowe o’ weel-plac’d love, Luxuriantly indulge it.

1840.  Browning, Sordello, I. 637. Round each new discovery wreathed Luxuriantly the fancies infantine.

1863.  Lyell, Antiq. Man, 16. Nowhere … does this tree flourish more luxuriantly than in Denmark.