glaze
Americanverb (used with object)
-
glazes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
glazed,
past participle, past
-
glazing
present participle
-
to furnish or fill with glass.
to glaze a window.
-
to give a vitreous surface or coating to (a ceramic or the like), as by the application of a substance or by fusion of the body.
-
to cover with a smooth, glossy surface or coating.
-
Cooking. to coat (a food) with sugar, a sugar syrup, or some other glossy, edible substance.
-
Fine Arts. to cover (a painted surface or parts of it) with a thin layer of transparent color in order to modify the tone.
-
to give a glassy surface to, as by polishing.
-
to give a coating of ice to (frozen food) by dipping in water.
-
to grind (cutlery blades) in preparation for finishing.
verb (used without object)
-
glazes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
glazed,
past participle, past
-
glazing
present participle
-
to become glazed or glassy.
Their eyes glazed over as the lecturer droned on.
-
(of a grinding wheel) to lose abrasive quality through polishing of the surface from wear.
noun
-
glazes
plural
-
a smooth, glossy surface or coating.
-
the substance for producing such a coating.
-
Ceramics.
-
a vitreous layer or coating on a piece of pottery.
-
the substance of which such a layer or coating is made.
-
-
Fine Arts. a thin layer of transparent color spread over a painted surface.
-
a smooth, lustrous surface on certain fabrics, produced by treating the material with a chemical and calendering.
-
Cooking.
-
a substance used to coat a food, especially sugar or sugar syrup.
-
stock cooked down to a thin paste for applying to the surface of meats.
-
-
especially British, glazed frost. Also called silver frost, silver thaw, verglas, glaze ice. a thin coating of ice on terrestrial objects, caused by rain that freezes on impact.
verb
-
(tr) to fit or cover with glass
-
(tr) ceramics to cover with a vitreous solution, rendering impervious to liquid and smooth to the touch
-
(tr) to cover (a painting) with a layer of semitransparent colour to modify the tones
-
(tr) to cover (foods) with a shiny coating by applying beaten egg, sugar, etc
-
(tr) to make glossy or shiny
-
to become or cause to become glassy
his eyes were glazing over
noun
-
ceramics
-
a vitreous or glossy coating
-
the substance used to produce such a coating
-
-
a semitransparent coating applied to a painting to modify the tones
-
a smooth lustrous finish on a fabric produced by applying various chemicals
-
something used to give a glossy surface to foods
a syrup glaze
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
glazernoun
-
glazinessnoun
-
semiglazenoun
-
reglazeverb (used with object)
-
glazedadjective
-
glazyadjective
-
glazilyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
glazesimple
-
glazessimple
-
have glazedperfect
-
has glazedperfect
-
am glazingprogressive
-
are glazingprogressive
-
is glazingprogressive
-
have been glazingperfect progressive
-
has been glazingperfect progressive
Past
-
glazedsimple
-
had glazedperfect
-
was glazingprogressive
-
were glazingprogressive
-
had been glazingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of glaze
1325–75; Middle English glasen, derivative of glas glass
Explanation
The glaze on a doughnut is the thin sweet coating that makes your fingers sticky. The glaze on a coffee table is the shiny coating that makes it glossy. The glaze on your friend's eyes as you talk is a sign that maybe you're boring her. Like glass, a glaze is a shiny clear substance so it's no surprise that they both come from the same root word glas. Objects that have a glaze on them include ceramic pots and doughnuts. If you glaze over something, you're covering it with a thin clear substance that makes it look polished. If someone says your eyes are starting to glaze over, snap out of it and look alive.
Vocabulary lists containing glaze
Unit 1: Telling Details
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Stairway To Leaven: Baking Vocabulary
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Ghost Boys
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
See Examples For:
His challenging Queen Mab speech, which can glaze the eyes, here is delivered with delectable playfulness, as Mercutio sports almost flirtatiously with Romeo.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026
At some point, everyone’s eyes are going to glaze over and it’s going to be 3-2-1, turn the TV off!
From Los Angeles Times ● May 27, 2026
"They'd ask what school I'd gone to when I replied, 'you know, just like the local comprehensive,' their eyes would just sort of glaze over."
From BBC ● May 17, 2026
My favorite dish of the night followed: tawa-charred octopus served with cauliflower purée, fennel and crunchy rice for texture, all brightened with yuzu-lime chaat aioli and an orange glaze.
From Salon ● Mar. 7, 2026
It had baked all afternoon on a table by a south-facing window in the library, and now three fine meandering lines in the glaze, converging like rivers in an atlas, were all that showed.
From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan
![]()
He also decided to create more meaningful memorials—by incorporating cremated ashes into pottery glazes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 6, 2025
The classic pineapple-and-cherry garnish still has its fans, but today’s glazes go beyond tradition — honey, molasses, fruit preserves, hot sauces, vinegars.
From Salon ● Apr. 18, 2025
“I was blown away by her incredible sense of design, how she uses a very tiny brush to make little lines that keep the glazes separated, similar to the look of cloisonné,” Gulbran says.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 20, 2024
He leaves the surfaces simple, without colorful glazes or decoration.
From Seattle Times ● May 8, 2024
No one is behind the counter when Mabel and I walk in, but the store is warm and bright, full of earth tones and tinted glazes.
From "We Are Okay" by Nina LaCour
![]()
Menu offerings include appetizers such as Dungeness crab cakes and lobster corn dogs, and entrées such as crispy chicken Milanese, honey miso glazed salmon and a signature Skywalker Ranch Wagyu burger.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026
When her sister, Rowe, walked in that morning, she found Waldorf with her eyes wide and glazed over, her jaw tensed.
From Salon ● May 27, 2026
Chisora, partly outside of the ropes, beat the count at eight, eyes glazed, as Wilder stalked forward.
From BBC ● Apr. 4, 2026
His sculptures, composed of stacked forms and glazed in natural colors, bring to mind chimneys, duct work and totem poles.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 27, 2026
Even so, their father's eyes glazed with tears more than once as the four girls went through their paces.
From "How the García Girls Lost Their Accents" by Julia Alvarez
![]()
The U.S. asset manager expects the Japanese company to capture rising demand for architectural glass, automotive glazing and solar products thanks to its manufacturing capabilities and deep customer relationships.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 24, 2026
To describe the phenomenon, he used the slang word "glazing" -- to excessively praise something.
From Barron's ● Mar. 24, 2026
So they had to test out different processes of glazing in order to make the tone and texture match the old tiles as closely as possible.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 10, 2025
“Please don’t be glazing me here, Zohran,” he said, borrowing some Gen Alpha slang as the candidates, and audience, laughed riotously.
From Salon ● Nov. 2, 2025
He’d cast a quick glance at Dr. Relf’s tools, and she had everything else necessary, so it wasn’t long before he returned with a little bag of glazing sprigs.
From "The Book of Dust: La Belle Sauvage" by Philip Pullman
![]()
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions 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.