glimmer
Americannoun
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glimmers
plural
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a faint or unsteady light; gleam.
-
a dim perception; inkling.
verb (used without object)
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glimmers,
present (3rd person singular)
-
glimmered,
past participle, past
-
glimmering
present participle
-
to shine faintly or unsteadily; twinkle, shimmer, or flicker.
-
to appear faintly or dimly.
verb
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(of a light, candle, etc) to glow faintly or flickeringly
-
to be indicated faintly
hope glimmered in his face
noun
-
a glow or twinkle of light
-
a faint indication
Synonym Usage
See gleam.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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glimmersimple
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glimmerssimple
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have glimmeredperfect
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has glimmeredperfect
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am glimmeringprogressive
-
are glimmeringprogressive
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is glimmeringprogressive
-
have been glimmeringperfect progressive
-
has been glimmeringperfect progressive
Past
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glimmeredsimple
-
had glimmeredperfect
-
was glimmeringprogressive
-
were glimmeringprogressive
-
had been glimmeringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of glimmer
1300–50; Middle English glimeren “to gleam”; cognate with German glimmern; compare Old English gleomu “splendor”
Explanation
A glimmer is a tiny glint of light or the sliver of an idea. Either way, it's a sign of a lot more going on behind the scenes. A glimmer of light is just a little bit of light, maybe sneaking through the curtains enough to make a flicker on the floor. A glimmer of an idea is just a small inkling of an idea. When someone doesn't understand something, you could make them feel worse by saying, "You don't have a glimmer of what I'm talking about, do you?" When it comes to light, you can also say light is glimmering, or gleaming. People often say stars are glimmering.
Vocabulary lists containing glimmer
"Harrison Bergeron"
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"Of Mice and Men"
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "G"
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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:
There was a brief glimmer of hope Servite would come back when it scored a touchdown to make the score 34-21 with five minutes left.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026
The first glimmer of our AI future revealed itself a decade ago in the form of a single black stone.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 8, 2026
When prices for previously owned homes hit a record high of $440,600 in June, Lawrence Yun, chief economist at the National Association of Realtors, said the latest housing data contained a glimmer of positive news.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 14, 2026
Gil remembers, smiling, that at that moment he thought, "Oh my God, there's a step. There's a glimmer of hope."
From Barron's ● Jul. 5, 2026
A glimmer of Ms. Bethune’s red and silver sneakers appeared next to her desk.
From "Shooting Kabul" by N. H. Senzai
For those of us who actually do like crepes, though, there are some glimmers of hope.
From Salon ● Aug. 16, 2026
"We have seen one or two weaknesses, glimmers, no more than that," said Nevin.
From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026
This “Farm” isn’t lacking for good intentions and, in spots, as with Woody Harrelson’s fine casting as the naïve, loyal horse Boxer, one can see glimmers of what a good adaptation might have been.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 1, 2026
Havana's real estate market is showing glimmers of revival as investors bet that a political and economic revolution is coming to the Communist-governed island.
From Barron's ● Apr. 24, 2026
But just as in his freshman season, he showed glimmers of promise.
From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand
Beats hummed, lights glimmered and about 200 young men and women traded emerald-green tiles.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 17, 2026
In a small village further up the beach, Christmas lights glimmered in the dark.
From BBC ● Dec. 21, 2023
Cameras and cellphones focused on the Colorado quarterback, whose thick diamond-encrusted chain adorned with his No. 2 jersey number glimmered as the sun rose over the east side of Folsom Field.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 30, 2023
The sun glimmered on the sea outside his west-facing windows.
From Seattle Times ● Jul. 12, 2023
The starched white sleeves of his shirt, rolled up to the elbows, glimmered eerily in the half dark and his tan skin seemed almost black.
From "The Bell Jar" by Sylvia Plath
And while the movie’s legacy looks a little more macabre now, Panettiere and Trachtenberg’s glimmering performances are enough to push through the darkness.
From Salon ● Aug. 18, 2026
Swimming pools, well-manicured lawns, carefully appointed midcentury interiors, glimmering light and stylish people abound.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026
Alongside the spectacle of execution and the glimmering blood, Mary, John, St. Dominic and others beside Christ in many of these frescos cover their faces or turn away.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 12, 2026
In the closing shot, the words "we belong together" appeared over a sea of bodies dancing beneath glimmering lights at the show.
From BBC ● Jan. 15, 2026
Faster and faster, until even the knight in his armor is gone beneath the gray and glimmering waves.
From "The Inquisitor's Tale" by Adam Gidwitz
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.
