scintillate
UK /ˈsɪn.tɪˌleɪt/ · US /ˈsɪn.təˌleɪt/ verb
Forms scintillates scintillating scintillated
- verb (intransitive) To give off sparks; to shine as if emanating sparks; to twinkle or glow.
- verb (astronomy) Of a star or other celestial body: to vary rapidly in brightness; to twinkle.
- verb (nuclear physics) Especially of a phosphor: to emit a flash of light upon absorbing ionizing radiation.
- verb (intransitive) To dazzle or to impress.
- verb (transitive, now rare) To throw off like sparks.
Synonyms
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin scintillātus, past participle of scintillāre (“to sparkle, glitter, gleam, flash”), from scintilla (“a spark”).
Webster’s 1913
Etymology [L. scintillare, scintillatum, from scintilla a spark. Cf. Stencil.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “scintillate”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details