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glister

[glis-ter]
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verb (used without object) Archaic.
  1. to glisten; glitter.
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noun
  1. glitter; sparkle.
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Origin of glister

1350–1400; Middle English; akin to glisten
Related formsglis·ter·ing·ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

radiance, glare, show, glitz, zap, glisten, twinkle, gleam, flash, shimmer, sparkle, sheen, luster, glamour, beam, shine, brightness, pageantry, coruscation, splendor

Examples from the Web for glister

Historical Examples

  • A glowworm is not discerned in the sunshine, though it glister in the dark.

    A Christian Directory (Volume 1 of 4)

    Richard Baxter

  • Despite the keen wind, a glister of sweat-drops studded his forehead.

    Darkness and Dawn

    George Allan England

  • George Light in 1657 paid Dr. Modè fifty pounds of tobacco for 'a glister and administering.'

  • She only shook her head; and now he saw the glister of tear-drops in those beautiful gray eyes.

    The Air Trust

    George Allan England

  • The glister of the profit that was supposed to have ensued to Scotsmen blinded many men's eyes at the first sight.

British Dictionary definitions for glister

glister

verb, noun
  1. an archaic word for glitter
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Derived Formsglisteringly, adverb

Word Origin

C14: probably from Middle Dutch glisteren
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

Word Origin and History for glister

v.

late 14c., probably from or related to Low German glisten, Middle Dutch glisteren, from PIE root *ghel- "to shine, glitter" (see glass). Related: Glistered; glistering. As a noun, from 1530s.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper