glisten


Also found in: Thesaurus, Idioms.

glis·ten

 (glĭs′ən)
intr.v. glis·tened, glis·ten·ing, glis·tens
1. To shine by reflection with a sparkling luster: "Sweat ... trickled in streams down his face and glistened in his beard" (Lois Lowry). See Synonyms at flash.
2. To be reflected with a sparkling luster: "The sun glistened upon his hair" (Robert Louis Stevenson).
n.
A sparkling, lustrous shine.

[Middle English glisnen, from Old English glisnian; see ghel- in Indo-European roots.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

glisten

(ˈɡlɪsən)
vb (intr)
1. (of a wet or glossy surface) to gleam by reflecting light: wet leaves glisten in the sunlight.
2. (of light) to reflect with brightness: the sunlight glistens on wet leaves.
n
rare a gleam or gloss
[Old English glisnian; related to glisian to glitter, Middle High German glistern]
ˈglisteningly adv
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

glis•ten

(ˈglɪs ən)
v.i.
1. to reflect a sparkling light or a faint intermittent glow, as a sleek or wet surface; shine lustrously.
n.
2. a glistening; sparkle.
[before 1000; Middle English; Old English glisnian, derivative of glisian to glitter; see -en1]
glis′ten•ing•ly, adv.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.

glisten


Past participle: glistened
Gerund: glistening

Imperative
glisten
glisten
Present
I glisten
you glisten
he/she/it glistens
we glisten
you glisten
they glisten
Preterite
I glistened
you glistened
he/she/it glistened
we glistened
you glistened
they glistened
Present Continuous
I am glistening
you are glistening
he/she/it is glistening
we are glistening
you are glistening
they are glistening
Present Perfect
I have glistened
you have glistened
he/she/it has glistened
we have glistened
you have glistened
they have glistened
Past Continuous
I was glistening
you were glistening
he/she/it was glistening
we were glistening
you were glistening
they were glistening
Past Perfect
I had glistened
you had glistened
he/she/it had glistened
we had glistened
you had glistened
they had glistened
Future
I will glisten
you will glisten
he/she/it will glisten
we will glisten
you will glisten
they will glisten
Future Perfect
I will have glistened
you will have glistened
he/she/it will have glistened
we will have glistened
you will have glistened
they will have glistened
Future Continuous
I will be glistening
you will be glistening
he/she/it will be glistening
we will be glistening
you will be glistening
they will be glistening
Present Perfect Continuous
I have been glistening
you have been glistening
he/she/it has been glistening
we have been glistening
you have been glistening
they have been glistening
Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been glistening
you will have been glistening
he/she/it will have been glistening
we will have been glistening
you will have been glistening
they will have been glistening
Past Perfect Continuous
I had been glistening
you had been glistening
he/she/it had been glistening
we had been glistening
you had been glistening
they had been glistening
Conditional
I would glisten
you would glisten
he/she/it would glisten
we would glisten
you would glisten
they would glisten
Past Conditional
I would have glistened
you would have glistened
he/she/it would have glistened
we would have glistened
you would have glistened
they would have glistened
Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Noun1.glisten - the quality of shining with a bright reflected lightglisten - the quality of shining with a bright reflected light
brightness - the location of a visual perception along a continuum from black to white
Verb1.glisten - be shiny, as if wet; "His eyes were glistening"
appear, seem, look - give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect; "She seems to be sleeping"; "This appears to be a very difficult problem"; "This project looks fishy"; "They appeared like people who had not eaten or slept for a long time"
spangle - glitter as if covered with spangles
shimmer - give off a shimmering reflection, as of silk
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.

glisten

verb gleam, flash, shine, sparkle, glitter, shimmer, twinkle, glint, glimmer, scintillate The calm sea glistened in the sunlight.
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

glisten

verb
To emit light suddenly in rays or sparks:
noun
Sparkling, brilliant light:
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
يَلْمَع، يَتَلألأ
lesknout se
glinse
glitra
blizgėti
spīdēt
lesketati se
parıldamakparlamak

glisten

[ˈglɪsn] VI [wet surface] → relucir; [water] → espejear; [eyes] → brillar
her eyes glistened with tearsle brillaban los ojos de las lágrimas
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

glisten

[ˈglɪsən] vibriller, luire
to glisten with tears → briller de larmes
to glisten with sweat → luire de sueur
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

glisten

viglänzen; (dewdrops, tears)glitzern
nGlänzen nt, → Glitzern nt
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

glisten

[ˈglɪsn] vi (wet surface, water) → luccicare; (eyes) to glisten (with)brillare (di)
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

glisten

(ˈglisn) verb
to shine faintly or sparkle. His skin glistened with sweat.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.
References in classic literature ?
His eyes began to glisten and his forefinger to tremble.
The edges of his teeth that were tipped with gold glistened in the light.
But when within thy wave she looks - Which glistens then, and trembles - Why, then, the prettiest of brooks Her worshipper resembles; For in my heart, as in thy stream, Her image deeply lies - His heart which trembles at the beam Of her soul-searching eyes.
In another instant the tree was deserted; the figures of the five millionaires of Devil's Ford, crossing the fierce glare of the open space, with boyish alacrity, glistened in the sunlight, and then disappeared in the nearest fringe of thickets.
Its very garments, moreover, partook of the magical change, and shone with the gloss of novelty and glistened with the skilfully embroidered gold that had long ago been rent away.
Its garments, too, glistened so much the brighter with an illusory magnificence.
The neighbouring stream sparkled, and rolled onward with a tuneful sound; the dew glistened on the green mounds, like tears shed by Good Spirits over the dead.
As it bulged up and caught the light, it glistened like wet leather.
Others polished the blade until all the rust was removed and it glistened like burnished silver.
They pinched and saved so that I should have enough to live on, and when my first picture was exhibited they came to Amsterdam to see it, my father and mother and my sister, and my mother cried when she looked at it." His kind eyes glistened. "And now on every wall of the old house there is one of my pictures in a beautiful gold frame."
The earth in the kitchen garden looked wet and black and glistened like poppy seed and at a short distance merged into the dull, moist veil of mist.
I would paint her the life and joy of the fire-side circle and the lively summer group; I would follow her through the sultry fields at noon, and hear the low tones of her sweet voice in the moonlit evening walk; I would watch her in all her goodness and charity abroad, and the smiling untiring discharge of domestic duties at home; I would paint her and her dead sister's child happy in their love for one another, and passing whole hours together in picturing the friends whom they had so sadly lost; I would summon before me, once again, those joyous little faces that clustered round her knee, and listen to their merry prattle; I would recall the tones of that clear laugh, and conjure up the sympathising tear that glistened in the soft blue eye.