luxury vs luxurious

[thedaffodils]

The luxury shoe brand helped the socialite amass a personal fortune of £150 million, but it was almost derailed before it began. In her twenties, Tamara's hard-partying lifestyle landed her in rehab.

Read more: How Tamara Mellon turned her life around (and why her child won't inherit her Jimmy Choos) | Mail Online

Hello, Can I replace "luxury" with "luxurious" in the above context? What's the diffence between them as they are adjective?

Thank you!

[iKitty]

NOT A TEACHER

No, you couldn't – the two have different meanings.

In this context, 'luxury' has a particular meaning: the best, the most expensive, the most prestigious. A brand that you would expect rich people, and maybe even famous people, to buy.

'Luxurious' appears to have a similar meaning, as in very comfortable, very expensive. But it is applied to a particular class of things – you would mainly describe soft things as being luxurious. It could be thick towels, fur coats, cosmetics, the feeling of the bubbles made by washing-up liquid (if you are an advertiser!)...but not shoes, and not a brand of anything.

Hope that helps!

[jahildebrandt]

Not a teacher.

Luxury and luxurious are used to describe things in different ways. When luxury is used as an adjective, it's used for tangible objects, like shoes and cars. In this sense, it's comparable to fancy. Luxurious can often be used to describe thoughts and emotions as well as objects, but luxury is the more limited in its use.

When I read the example sentence as it is, it describes a company that makes luxury (or luxurious) shoes. If it were "a luxurious shoe brand," I wouldn't know with certainty if the brand was luxurious or if the shoes were luxurious. It makes sense, but it is slightly confusing. That's why luxury is the better choice.