glitter
UK /ˈɡlɪtə/ · US /ˈɡlɪtəɹ/ noun, verb
Forms glitters glittering glittered
- noun A bright, sparkling light; shininess or brilliance.
- noun A shiny, decorative adornment, sometimes sprinkled on glue to make simple artwork.
- noun (figurative) Glitz.
- verb To sparkle with light; to shine with a brilliant and broken light or showy luster; to gleam. “a glittering sword”
- verb To be showy, specious, or striking, and hence attractive. “the glittering scenes of a court”
Synonyms
glister glisten scintillation sparkle coruscation glint gleam shine
Etymology
From Middle English gliteren, from Old Norse glitra, from Proto-Germanic *glitrōną (“to glitter”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰley-.
Webster’s 1913
- verb To sparkle with light; to shine with a brilliant and broken light or showy luster; to gleam; as, a glittering sword.
- verb To be showy, specious, or striking, and hence attractive; as, the glittering scenes of a court.
- noun A bright, sparkling light; brilliant and showy luster; brilliancy; as, the glitter of arms; the glitter of royal equipage.
Etymology [OE. gliteren; akin to Sw. glittra, Icel. glitra, glita, AS. glitenian, OS. glitan, OHG. glizzan, G. gleissen, Goth. glitmunjan, and also to E. glint, glisten, and prob. glance, gleam.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “glitter”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details