glitter

English

Etymology

From Middle English gliteren, from Old Norse glitra, from Proto-Germanic *glitrōną (“to glitter”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰley-.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈɡlɪtə(ɹ)/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈɡlɪtɚ/, [ˈɡlɪɾɚ]

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɪtə(ɹ)

Noun

glitter (countable and uncountable, plural glitters)

1. A bright, sparkling light; shininess or brilliance.
   • 1841 February–November, Charles Dickens, “Barnaby Rudge”, in Master Humphrey’s Clock, volume III, London: Chapman & Hall, […], →OCLC, chapter 57:

     As yet there had been no symptom of the news having any better foundation than in the fears of those who brought it, but The Boot had not been deserted five minutes, when there appeared, coming across the fields, a body of men who, it was easy to see, by the glitter of their arms and ornaments in the sun, and by their orderly and regular mode of advancing.

   • 1913, Mary Averill, Japanese flower arrangement, Chapter 20:

     This to them seems most like mother earth in color, and therefore best, as it is, to enhance the beauty of flowers instead of detracting from their exquisite shades. What a contrast to the glitter and show of our silver vases, which represent generally little else but their cost.

2. A shiny, decorative adornment, sometimes sprinkled on glue to make simple artwork.
3. (figurative) Glitz.

Derived terms

• glitter bomb
• glitter family
• glitter rock

 

Descendants

• → Portuguese: glitter
• → Spanish: glitter

Translations

bright, sparkling light; brilliant and showy luster; brilliancy

• Armenian: փայլ (hy) (pʻayl)
• Belarusian: бляск m (bljask)
• Bulgarian: бля́сък (bg) m (bljásǎk)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 閃光／闪光 (zh) (shǎnguāng)

• Czech: blesk (cs) m
• Dutch: schittering (nl) f
• Finnish: välke (fi), kimallus (fi), säihke (fi), kimmellys (fi)
• French: étincellement (fr) m
• Georgian: ბრწყინვა (brc̣q̇inva)
• Hindi: चमक (hi) f (camak)
• Icelandic: glitur n
• Irish: glioscarnach f
• Italian: glitter (it)
• Japanese: 煌めき (きらめき, kirameki)
• Macedonian: блесок m (blesok)
• Maori: korakora pīata
• Polish: blask (pl) m
• Portuguese: resplendor (pt) m
• Romanian: strălucire (ro) f
• Russian: блеск (ru) m (blesk)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: бле̑сак m, бље̑сак m, блије̑сак m

  Roman: blȇsak m, bljȇsak (sh) m, blijȇsak (sh) m

• Slovak: blesk m
• Slovene: blèsk m
• Spanish: brillo (es) m
• Swedish: glitter (sv) n
• Ukrainian: блиск (uk) m (blysk), ся́йво n (sjájvo)

shiny, decoractive adornment

• Bulgarian: брока́т m (brokát)
• Catalan: gebre (ca) m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 亮片 (liàngpiàn), 金屬飾片／金属饰片 (jīnshǔ shì piàn)

• Dutch: glitter (nl) m
• Finnish: koristehile, kimalle (fi)
• French: paillette (fr) f
• German: Glitter (de) m
• Greek: χρυσόσκονη (el) f (chrysóskoni), γκλίτερ (el) n (gklíter)
• Hindi: चमक (hi) f (camak)
• Italian: brillantini (it) m pl
• Japanese: グリッター (gurittā)
• Polish: brokat (pl) m
• Portuguese: glitter (pt) m, purpurina (pt) f
• Romanian: sclipici n
• Russian: блёстки f pl (bljóstki)
• Spanish: purpurina (es) f, escarcha (es) f
• Swedish: glitter (sv) n
• Thai: กากเพชร (th) (gàak-pét)
• Vietnamese: kim tuyến (vi)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Slovene: ^{(please verify)} bleščice

Verb

glitter (third-person singular simple present glitters, present participle glittering, simple past and past participle glittered)

1. To sparkle with light; to shine with a brilliant and broken light or showy luster; to gleam.

   a glittering sword

   the glittering ornaments on a Christmas tree

   • 1697, Virgil, “The Second Book of the Georgics”, in John Dryden, transl., The Works of Virgil: Containing His Pastorals, Georgics, and Æneis. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC:

     The field yet glitters with the pomp of war.

2. To be showy, specious, or striking, and hence attractive.

   the glittering scenes of a court

Derived terms

• aglitter
• all that glitters is not gold
• glitterati

Translations

to sparkle with light

• Arabic: لَمَعَ (ar) (lamaʕa), بَرَقَ (ar) (baraqa), تَوَهَّجَ (tawahhaja), تَأَلَّقَ (taʔallaqa)
• Belarusian: блішча́ць impf (bliščácʹ), блі́скаць impf (blískacʹ), зіхаце́ць impf (zixacjécʹ), ззяць impf (zzjacʹ)
• Bulgarian: блестя́ (bg) impf (blestjá), сия́я (bg) impf (sijája)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 閃耀／闪耀 (zh) (shǎnyào)

• Czech: třpytit se impf, blýskat se (cs) impf
• Danish: glitre
• Dutch: schitteren (nl)
• Esperanto: brileti
• Finnish: säihkyä, välkehtiä, kiiltää (fi), kimmeltää (fi), kimaltaa (fi)
• French: briller (fr)
• Georgian: ბრწყინვა (brc̣q̇inva)
• German: glitzern (de)
• Greek:

  Ancient: στίλβω (stílbō)

• Hindi: चमकना (camaknā)
• Icelandic: glitra
• Japanese: 輝く (ja) (かがやく, kagayaku), キラキラする (kirakira suru)
• Korean: 반짝이다 (ko) (banjjagida), 비추다 (ko) (bichuda)
• Latin: micō (la), coruscō, fulgeō
• Lithuanian: blizgėti
• Macedonian: светка impf (svetka), сјае impf (sjae)
• Maori: kōritorito, iraira, whakaira, rikoriko, nanamu, wheriko
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: glitre

  Nynorsk: glitre

• Old English: blīcan
• Persian: درخشیدن (fa) (deraxšidan)
• Polish: błyszczeć (pl) impf, błyszczeć się (pl) impf, lśnić (pl) impf, połyskiwać (pl) impf
• Portuguese: resplandecer (pt)
• Quechua: phaqsay
• Russian: блесте́ть (ru) impf (blestétʹ), блесну́ть (ru) pf (blesnútʹ), сверка́ть (ru) impf (sverkátʹ), сверкну́ть (ru) pf (sverknútʹ), сия́ть (ru) impf (sijátʹ)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: блѝстати impf, сѝјати impf

  Roman: blìstati (sh) impf, sìjati (sh) impf

• Shan: ၽၢပ်ႇ (shn) (phàap)
• Slovak: blyšťať sa impf
• Slovene: blesteti impf, sijati impf
• Spanish: brillar (es), resplandecer (es), centellear (es)
• Swedish: glittra (sv)
• Ukrainian: блища́ти (uk) impf (blyščáty), блисті́ти (uk) impf (blystíty), блискоті́ти (uk) impf (blyskotíty), ся́яти impf (sjájaty), ся́ти impf (sjáty)
• Volapük: glimön (vo)

to be showy, specious, or striking, and hence attractive

• Finnish: säihkyä

Portuguese

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from English glitter.

Pronunciation

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈɡli.teʁ/

Noun

glitter m (uncountable)

1. glitter (shiny, decorative dust)

Spanish

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from English glitter.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɡliteɾ/ [ˈɡli.t̪eɾ]
• Rhymes: -iteɾ

Noun

glitter m (plural glitteres)

1. glitter

Usage notes

According to Royal Spanish Academy (RAE) prescriptions, unadapted foreign words should be written in italics in a text printed in roman type, and vice versa, and in quotation marks in a manuscript text or when italics are not available. In practice, this RAE prescription is not always followed.

Swedish

Etymology

Probably from Old Norse glitra.

Noun

glitter n (uncountable)

1. glitter (glittering)
2. glitter (a shiny, decorative adornment, sometimes sprinkled on glue)
3. tinsel (shiny foil, often strung on a thread)

   julgransglitter

   tinsel garlands put on a Christmas tree

Declension

Declension of glitter
	Uncountable
	Indefinite	Definite
Nominative	glitter	glittret	—	—
Genitive	glitters	glittrets	—	—

Related terms

• glittra
• glittrig

References

• glitter in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• glitter in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)