Definition of gleam verb from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

gleam

verb

/ɡliːm/

Verb Forms

present simple I / you / we / they gleam	/ɡliːm/ /ɡliːm/
he / she / it gleams	/ɡliːmz/ /ɡliːmz/
past simple gleamed	/ɡliːmd/ /ɡliːmd/
past participle gleamed	/ɡliːmd/ /ɡliːmd/
-ing form gleaming	/ˈɡliːmɪŋ/ /ˈɡliːmɪŋ/

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[intransitive] to shine with a pale clear light
- The moonlight gleamed on the water.
- Her eyes gleamed in the dark.
Synonyms shine
shinegleam ▪ glow ▪ sparkle ▪ glisten ▪ shimmer ▪ glitter ▪ twinkle ▪ glintThese words all mean to produce or reflect light.
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:
Moonlight gleamed on the water.
glow (often of something hot or warm) to produce a steady light that is not very bright:
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:
The road glistened wet after the rain.
shimmer to shine with a soft light that seems to shake slightly:
Everything seemed to shimmer in the heat.
glitter to shine brightly with small flashes of reflected light:
The ceiling of the cathedral glittered with gold.
sparkle or glitter?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: Stars 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.
Patterns
- 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
- to shine/gleam/glisten/shimmer/glitter/glint in the 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
Extra Examples
- The knife's blade gleamed dully in the dark.
- A light gleamed faintly from a first floor window.
- The evening light gleamed softly through the window.
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
adverb
- dully
- faintly
- softly
- …
preposition
- with
phrases
- gleam golden, white, etc.
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[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.
Extra Examples
- The long oak table gleamed with polish.
- The pebble beach gleamed white in the moonlight.
[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.
- Laughter gleamed in his eyes.

Word OriginOld English glǣm ‘brilliant light’, of Germanic origin.

See gleam in the Oxford Advanced American Dictionary

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gleam noun

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trait

noun

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