Glitter Definitions

Webster's 1828 Dictionary

GLIT'TER, v.i.
1. To shine; to sparkle with light; to gleam; to be splendid; as a glittering sword.
The field yet glitters with the pomp of war.
2. To be showing, specious or striking, and hence attractive; as the glittering scenes of a court.
GLIT'TER, n. Brightness; brilliancy; splendor; luster; as the glitter of arms; the glitter of royal equipage; the glitter of dress.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: the quality of shining with a bright reflected light [syn: glitter, glister, glisten, scintillation, sparkle]
2: the occurrence of a small flash or spark [syn: glitter, sparkle, coruscation] v
1: be shiny, as if wet; "His eyes were glistening" [syn: glitter, glisten, glint, gleam, shine]

Merriam Webster's

I. intransitive verb Etymology: Middle English gliteren, perhaps from Old Norse glitra; akin to Old English geolu yellow Date: 14th century 1. a. to shine by reflection with many small flashes of brilliant light ; sparkle <sequins glittered in the spotlight> b. to shine with strong emotion ; flash <eyes glittering in anger> 2. to be brilliantly attractive, lavish, or spectacular; also to be superficially attractive or exciting Synonyms: see flash • glitteringly adverb II. noun Date: 1593 1. a. sparkling brilliance of something that glitters b. a bright usually superficial attractiveness c. the quality of being spectacular 2. small glittering objects used for ornamentation • glittery adjective

English Explanatory Dictionary

n.pl. sl. the fashionable set of literary or show-business people. [GLITTER+ LITERATI]

English Explanatory Dictionary

n.pl. sl. the fashionable set of literary or show-business people. [GLITTER+ LITERATI]

Oxford Reference Dictionary

v. & n. --v.intr. 1 shine, esp. with a bright reflected light; sparkle. 2 (usu. foll. by with) a be showy or splendid (glittered with diamonds). b be ostentatious or flashily brilliant (glittering rhetoric). --n. 1 a gleam; a sparkle. 2 showiness; splendour. 3 tiny pieces of sparkling material as on Christmas-tree decorations. Derivatives: glitteringly adv. glittery adj. Etymology: ME f. ON glitra f. Gmc

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Glitter Glit"ter, n. A bright, sparkling light; brilliant and showy luster; brilliancy; as, the glitter of arms; the glitter of royal equipage. --Milton.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Glitter Glit"ter, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Glittered; p. pr. & vb. n. Glittering.] [OE. gliteren; akin to Sw. glittra, Icel. glitra, glita, AS. glitenian, OS. gl[=i]tan, OHG. gl[=i]zzan, G. gleissen, Goth. glitmunjan, and also to E. glint, glisten, and prob. glance, gleam.] 1. To sparkle with light; to shine with a brilliant and broken light or showy luster; to gleam; as, a glittering sword. The field yet glitters with the pomp of war. --Dryden. 2. To be showy, specious, or striking, and hence attractive; as, the glittering scenes of a court. Syn: To gleam; to glisten; to shine; to sparkle; to glare. See Gleam, Flash.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(glitters, glittering, glittered) 1. If something glitters, light comes from or is reflected off different parts of it. The bay glittered in the sunshine... The Palace glittered with lights. = sparkle VERB: V, V prep 2. Glitter consists of tiny shining pieces of metal. It is glued to things for decoration. Decorate the tunic with sequins or glitter. N-UNCOUNT 3. You can use glitter to refer to superficial attractiveness or to the excitement connected with something. She was blinded by the glitter and the glamour of her own life.

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. v. n. Glisten, glister, sparkle, gleam, flare, glare, glance, flash, scintillate, coruscate, make a splendid show. II. n. Sparkle, glister, lustre, brilliancy, splendor, brightness, shine, radiance, gleam, scintillation, coruscation, beam, beaming.

Moby Thesaurus

be somebody, be something, bespangle, blatancy, blink, blinking, brazenness, brilliance, colorfulness, coruscate, coruscation, crudeness, cut a dash, cut a figure, cut a swath, dash, dazzle, dazzlingness, extravagance, extravaganza, extravagation, figure, firefly, flagrancy, flamboyance, flash, flashiness, floridity, floridness, flourish, gaiety, garishness, gaudery, gaudiness, glamor, glance, glare, gleam, glimmer, glimmering, glint, glisk, glisten, glister, glittering, glow, glowworm, gorgeousness, jauntiness, jazziness, live, loudness, luridness, make a figure, make a show, make a splash, meretriciousness, obtrusiveness, ostentation, pageantry, panache, pizzazz, refulgence, scintilla, scintillate, scintillation, sensationalism, shamelessness, shimmer, shimmering, shine, showiness, spangle, spark, sparkle, spectacle, splash, splendor, splurge, sportiness, stroboscopic light, tawdriness, tinsel, twinkle, twinkling, vulgarness