sheen
noun
luster; brightness; radiance.
sheen
1 American
[sheen]
/ ʃin /
Sheen
2
American
[sheen]
/ ʃin /
noun
sheen
British
/ ʃiːn /
noun
-
a gleaming or glistening brightness; lustre
-
poetic splendid clothing
adjective
Synonym Usage
See polish.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
sheensimple
-
sheenssimple
-
have sheenedperfect
-
has sheenedperfect
-
am sheeningprogressive
-
are sheeningprogressive
-
is sheeningprogressive
-
have been sheeningperfect progressive
-
has been sheeningperfect progressive
Past
-
sheenedsimple
-
had sheenedperfect
-
was sheeningprogressive
-
were sheeningprogressive
-
had been sheeningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of sheen
First recorded before 900; (adjective) Middle English sheene “beautiful, bright, shining,” Old English scēne; cognate with German schön; (verb) Middle English s(c)henen, derivative of the adjective; (noun) derivative of the adjective
Explanation
A sheen is a quality of things that are shiny, usually with reflected light. Anything that shines has a sheen, like satin in candlelight or a beautiful head of hair. Shakespeare loved using words in fresh new ways, and he did that with the adjective for sheen (for “beautiful, bright”) in Hamlet. He used sheen as a noun, and it’s been that way ever since. A sheen is a luster that happens because of reflected light. A well-polished table has a sheen, as does a car that's just been washed. Shined shoes have a sheen. If it’s shiny and beautiful, it has a sheen.
Vocabulary lists containing sheen
Unit 1: Telling Details
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The City of Ember
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Skellig
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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.
I mean no offense to Bettany or Michael Sheen, who recently signed on to reprise the role for a West End production set for spring of 2027.
From Salon • May 16, 2026
“We were both relieved we finished the story, but that’s within this really difficult, complicated, disturbing context,” Sheen said in an interview last year.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 30, 2026
A number of well-known actors and actresses have appeared on the show over the years, including Ioan Gruffudd, Iwan Rheon, Michael Sheen and Alexandra Roach.
From BBC • Apr. 26, 2026
Sheen, the Welsh National Theatre's artistic director, called it a "full-circle moment" and described the West End move as "an important next step".
From BBC • Apr. 23, 2026
Martin Sheen, by contrast, can be connected to every other actor in 2.63681 steps, which puts him almost 650 places higher than Bacon.
From "The Tipping Point" by Malcolm Gladwell
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.
