Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun Sumptuous or extremely comfortable living or surroundings.
  • noun Something that is not essential but provides pleasure and comfort.
  • noun Something that is desirable but expensive or hard to obtain or do.
  • adjective Providing luxury.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun Luxuriance; exuberance of growth.
  • noun A free or extravagant indulgence in pleasure, as of the table; voluptuousness in the gratification of any appetite; also, the free expenditure of wealth for the gratification of one's own desires, as in costly dress and equipage.
  • noun That which is delightful to the senses, the feelings, etc.; especially, that which gratifies a nice and fastidious appetite or taste; a dainty: as, a house filled with luxuries; the luxuries of the table.
  • noun Exuberant enjoyment; complete gratification or satisfaction, either physical or intellectual.
  • noun Lust; lewd desire; lasciviousness; indulgence in lust.
  • noun Synonyms and Epicurism, effeminacy, sensuality, delicacy, gratification, pleasure, enjoyment, delight. See luxurious.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun A free indulgence in costly food, dress, furniture, or anything expensive which gratifies the appetites or tastes.
  • noun Anything which pleases the senses, is not necessary for life, and is also costly, or difficult to obtain; an expensive rarity; Contrasted to necessity.
  • noun obsolete Lechery; lust.
  • noun obsolete Luxuriance; exuberance.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun very wealthy and comfortable surroundings.
  • noun something desirable but expensive.
  • noun something very pleasant but not really needed in life.
  • adjective very expensive

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun the quality possessed by something that is excessively expensive
  • noun wealth as evidenced by sumptuous living
  • noun something that is an indulgence rather than a necessity

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English luxurie, lust, from Old French, from Latin luxuria, excess, luxury, from luxus.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

Middle English luxurie, from Old French luxurie, from Latin luxuria ("rankness, luxury"), from luxus ("extravagance, luxury").

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