A small candle set inside a paper bag that has been weighted with sand, usually placed outdoors as decoration or to lighten a path for pedestrians: For her backyard evening picnic, Nancy made several luminary, placing them alongside the walkway leading from the driveway to the back yard to brighten the way for her guests.

Originally luminaria was the plural of "luminatrium"; however, luminaria is presented in some dictionaries as both a singular and a plural form.