- 1[intransitive] to shine with a pale clear light The moonlight gleamed on the water. Her eyes gleamed in the dark. Thesaurusshine
- gleam
- glow
- sparkle
- glisten
- shimmer
- glitter
- twinkle
- glint
- shine to produce or reflect light, especially brightly:The sun was shining and the sky was blue.
- gleam to shine with a clear bright or pale light, especially a reflected light:The moonlight gleamed on the water.
- glow (often of something hot or warm) to produce a dull, steady light:The end of his cigarette glowed red.
- sparkle to shine brightly with small flashes of light:The diamonds sparkled in the light.
- glisten (of something wet) to shine:Her eyes were glistening with tears.
- shimmer to shine with a soft light that seems to shake slightly:The road seemed to shimmer in the heat.
- glitter to shine brightly with small flashes of reflected light:The ceiling of the cathedral glittered with gold.
- There is very little difference in meaning between these two words. Glitter can sometimes suggest a lack of depth, but this is more frequent in the figurative use of glitter as a noun:the superficial glitter of show business. Sparkle is also often used to talk about light reflected off a surface, but things that produce light can also sparkle:The fireworks sparkled in the sky.
- twinkle to shine with a light that changes rapidly from bright to faint to bright again:Stars twinkled in the sky.
- glint to give small bright flashes of reflected light:The blade of the knife glinted in the darkness.
- to shine/gleam/sparkle/glisten/shimmer/glitter/glint on something
- to shine/gleam/glow/sparkle/glisten/shimmer/glitter/twinkle/glint with something
- to shine/gleam/sparkle/glisten/shimmer/glitter/glint in the sunlight/moonlight
- the stars shine/sparkle/glitter/twinkle
- somebody's eyes shine/gleam/glow/sparkle/glisten/glitter/twinkle/glint
- to shine/gleam/glow/glitter brightly
- to shine/gleam/glow/shimmer softly
- 2[intransitive] to look very clean or bright gleam (with something) The house was gleaming with fresh white paint. + adj. Her teeth gleamed white against the tanned skin of her face.
- 3[intransitive] if a person's eyes gleam with a particular emotion, or an emotion gleams in a person's eyes, the person shows that emotion gleam (with something) His eyes gleamed with amusement. gleam (in something) Amusement gleamed in his eyes.
gleam
verbNAmE//ɡlim//
Verb Forms present simple I / you / we / they gleam he / she / it gleams
past simple gleamed
-ing form gleaming
Check pronunciation: gleam