glaze
Americanverb (used with object)
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to furnish or fill with glass.
to glaze a window.
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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.
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to cover with a smooth, glossy surface or coating.
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Cooking. to coat (a food) with sugar, a sugar syrup, or some other glossy, edible substance.
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Fine Arts. to cover (a painted surface or parts of it) with a thin layer of transparent color in order to modify the tone.
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to give a glassy surface to, as by polishing.
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to give a coating of ice to (frozen food) by dipping in water.
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to grind (cutlery blades) in preparation for finishing.
verb (used without object)
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to become glazed or glassy.
Their eyes glazed over as the lecturer droned on.
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(of a grinding wheel) to lose abrasive quality through polishing of the surface from wear.
noun
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a smooth, glossy surface or coating.
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the substance for producing such a coating.
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Ceramics.
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a vitreous layer or coating on a piece of pottery.
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the substance of which such a layer or coating is made.
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Fine Arts. a thin layer of transparent color spread over a painted surface.
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a smooth, lustrous surface on certain fabrics, produced by treating the material with a chemical and calendering.
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Cooking.
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a substance used to coat a food, especially sugar or sugar syrup.
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stock cooked down to a thin paste for applying to the surface of meats.
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especially British, glazed frost. Also called silver frost, silver thaw, verglas. Also called glaze ice,. a thin coating of ice on terrestrial objects, caused by rain that freezes on impact.
verb
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(tr) to fit or cover with glass
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(tr) ceramics to cover with a vitreous solution, rendering impervious to liquid and smooth to the touch
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(tr) to cover (a painting) with a layer of semitransparent colour to modify the tones
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(tr) to cover (foods) with a shiny coating by applying beaten egg, sugar, etc
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(tr) to make glossy or shiny
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to become or cause to become glassy
his eyes were glazing over
noun
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ceramics
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a vitreous or glossy coating
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the substance used to produce such a coating
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a semitransparent coating applied to a painting to modify the tones
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a smooth lustrous finish on a fabric produced by applying various chemicals
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something used to give a glossy surface to foods
a syrup glaze
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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glazernoun
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glazinessnoun
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semiglazenoun
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reglazeverb (used with object)
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glazedadjective
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glazyadjective
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glazilyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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glazesimple
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glazessimple
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have glazedperfect
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has glazedperfect
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am glazingprogressive
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are glazingprogressive
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is glazingprogressive
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have been glazingperfect progressive
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has been glazingperfect progressive
Past
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glazedsimple
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had glazedperfect
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was glazingprogressive
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were glazingprogressive
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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
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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.
See Examples For:
Uncover the skillet, increase the heat to medium-high and continue to cook for an additional four minutes, until the liquid reduces to a glaze.
From Salon ● Jul. 22, 2026
In some ways, high school looks much the same as it did 20, even 100 years ago: sleepy eyes either light up or glaze over when a teacher poses a Socratic question.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 1, 2026
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
"When the dust settled I realised that the important things I wanted to do were the small things, the things that we often glaze over, that we don't even reflect on," he said.
From BBC ● Mar. 20, 2026
A salty ham may have a sweet glaze; a Thanksgiving plate will often have both turkey and cranberry sauce.
From "Sugar Changed the World: A Story of Magic, Spice, Slavery, Freedom, and Science" by Marc Aronson
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Places where glazes gleam like car paint, espumas suspend among dough sheets, croissants of a million layers.
From Salon ● Feb. 5, 2026
To publicize his idea, Crowe hit upon a plan that some might find a bit creepy: He designed an entire dinnerware series with the glazes, then held a dinner party using the products.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 6, 2025
Batchelder tiles can be palm-sized or larger, with muted matte finishes and understated glazes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 18, 2025
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
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I just know they’re the type of people who love a good board game — one with rules that take a half-hour to explain, by which time their guests’ eyes have glazed over.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 27, 2026
Then powered by a glazed doughnut and extra-large energy drink, he zips around driveways in northern New Jersey and nearby New York, ringing doorbells, photographing doorsteps and hauling away the physical aftermath of holiday optimism.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 31, 2025
We tried many plates, but the star of the night was the Cá Chiên Nước Mắm: a whole-fried, deboned bronzino glazed in sweet fish sauce.
From Salon ● Oct. 31, 2025
For the Charlotte-based maker of glazed doughnuts, 2025 has turned out a very difficult year.
From Barron's ● Oct. 22, 2025
We let Quinby eat until she looked over at us, her belly swollen, her eyes glazed, and gave a contented belch.
From "Willodeen" by Katherine Applegate
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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
Perugia would soon leave the glazing firm, but he’d gotten to know the workers at the Louvre and he still visited the museum.
From "The Mona Lisa Vanishes" by Nicholas Day
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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.