clinquant

[kling-kuh nt]

See more synonyms for clinquant on Thesaurus.com

adjective

glittering, especially with tinsel; decked with garish finery.

noun

imitation gold leaf; tinsel; false glitter.

Origin of clinquant

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

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for clinquant

gold, showy, tinsel

Examples from the Web for clinquant

Historical Examples of clinquant

The clinquant corslet of the Swiss girl just survives at bals costums.
The Works of Max Beerbohm
Max Beerbohm
My eyes rejoice in the shine of it; its clinquant sound is music in my ears.
Trivia
Logan Pearsall Smith
Clinquant, klingk′ant, adj. shining like tinsel: glittering.
Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 1 of 4: A-D)
Various
I liked Jack, but not clinquant in crimson and gold, with spurs and sword clanking on the hard, frost-bitten road.
The Yeoman Adventurer
George W. Gough

British Dictionary definitions for clinquant

clinquant

adjective

glittering, esp with tinsel

noun

tinsel or imitation gold leaf

Word Origin for clinquant

C16: from French, from clinquer to clink, from Dutch klinken, of imitative origin

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