gild
1 Americanverb (used with object)
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to coat with gold, gold leaf, or a gold-colored substance.
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to give a bright, pleasing, or specious aspect to.
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Archaic. to make red, as with blood.
idioms
noun
verb
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to cover with or as if with gold
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to adorn unnecessarily something already beautiful
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to praise someone inordinately
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to give a falsely attractive or valuable appearance to
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archaic to smear with blood
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of gild
1300–50; Middle English gilden, Old English -gyldan; akin to gold
Explanation
To gild something is to cover it with gold. You gild an object in order to decorate it — or just to show off your wealth. From forks to picture frames, gilding can make objects seem ritzy, glamorous, and more valuable. However, some things in life just don’t need a coat of gold. If someone says you are “gilding the lily,” they mean that you are trying to improve on something that is already perfect.
Vocabulary lists containing gild
Animal Farm
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Grendel
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The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
And for Maya, it always was like, “Put two more things on before you go. Gild the lily.”
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 5, 2025
One hopes we won’t have to wait too long for her to return to Serilda and Gild and spin their next chapter.
From New York Times • Nov. 9, 2021
“People think a small space shouldn’t be dark or have pattern all over, but those rules are completely subjective,” said Jennie Bishop, a partner at the Chicago- and Los Angeles-based interior design firm Studio Gild.
From Seattle Times • May 31, 2019
A robot recruiter like Entelo or Gild might be able to help you find a new one.
From The Guardian • Feb. 9, 2017
These various properties decked out the pageant which each Gild contributed to the common procession.
From The Influence and Development of English Gilds As Illustrated by the History of the Craft Gilds of Shrewsbury by Hibbert, Francis Aiden
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
