noun
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charm and allure; fascination
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fascinating or voluptuous beauty, often dependent on artifice
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( as modifier )
a glamour girl
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archaic a magic spell; charm
Spelling
See -or 1.
Etymology
Origin of glamour
First recorded in 1710–20; from Scots glamar, glamer, dissimilated variant of grammar in sense “occult learning”
Explanation
Glamour is the quality of being fascinating, alluring, or charming. If you've watched Marilyn Monroe on a movie screen, then you've witnessed glamour! The word glamour originally referred to a magical or even unreal charm or beauty attached to a person or an object. Today you can still glamour, or cast a spell over, someone, but you probably won’t. More often glamour is now used to mean a certain thrilling or attractive appeal. Glamour is more than just good looks — the right clothing, jewelry, attitude, or friends can produce glamour — the mark of a star.
Vocabulary lists containing glamour
And the Oscar Goes to... Award-worthy Words
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Awkward
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The Cruel Prince
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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.
“To love your family fiercely, to be kind, to show up for the people you love, and to never take a single moment together for granted,” she wrote alongside a glamour shot of Shannon.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 16, 2026
News that she has no regrets about walking away from the glitz and glamour, saying the decision was what was best for both her family and her mental health.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 7, 2026
But if the glamour of Ernst’s life is overdone, the novel is so action-packed that you hardly have time to roll your eyes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 26, 2026
The forward, tracked by Europe's biggest clubs from an early age, left his hometown of Paris for the glamour of Monaco at the age of 14.
From BBC ● Jun. 16, 2026
It had, in one word, glamour, absolute schoolboy glamour.
From "A Separate Peace" by John Knowles
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.
