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Synonyms

clinquant

American  
[kling-kuhnt] / ˈklɪŋ kənt /

adjective

  1. glittering, especially with tinsel; decked with garish finery.


noun

  1. imitation gold leaf; tinsel; false glitter.

clinquant British  
/ ˈklɪŋkənt /

adjective

  1. glittering, esp with tinsel

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

  1. tinsel or imitation gold leaf

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of clinquant

1585–95; < Middle French: clinking, present participle of clinquer (< Dutch klinken to sound); see -ant

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.

She that a clinquant outside doth adore, Dotes on a gilded statue and no more.

From The Lucasta Poems by Lovelace, Richard

Descartes has almost entirely discarded this quaintness, which sometimes passed into what is called in French clinquant, that is to say, tawdry and grotesque ornament.

From A Short History of French Literature by Saintsbury, George

To-day the French, All clinquant, all in gold, like heathen gods, Shone down the English; and, to-morrow, they Made Britain India: every man that stood Show'd like a mine.

From King Henry VIII by Shakespeare, William

I liked Jack, but not clinquant in crimson and gold, with spurs and sword clanking on the hard, frost-bitten road.

From The Yeoman Adventurer by Gough, George W.

My eyes rejoice in the shine of it; its clinquant sound is music in my ears.

From Trivia by Smith, Logan Pearsall