limn

[ lim ]

/ lɪm /

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See synonyms for: limn / limned on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object)

to represent in drawing or painting.

to portray in words; describe.

Obsolete. to illuminate (manuscripts).

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Origin of limn

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English lymne, variant of Middle English luminen “to illuminate (manuscripts),” variant of enlumine, from Middle French enluminer, from Latin inlūmināre “to embellish,” literally, “light up”; see illuminate

OTHER WORDS FROM limn

outlimn, verb (used with object)un·limned, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH limn

limb, limn

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use limn in a sentence

“Count the number of times he uses ‘I’ in any speech, and compare that to any other president,” limns Doctor Krauthammer.
Why the Right Thinks Obama’s a Narcissist—and Why They’re Wrong|John McWhorter|September 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
That's another story, and Doubt limns the particular joylessness of Irish Catholicism.
We Miserable Catholics|Frank McCourt|December 19, 2008|DAILY BEAST
The poem is also given in The Golden Treasury, p. 37; where, however, 'limns the water' is changed into 'limns on water.'
Life Of Johnson, Volume 5|Boswell
As a painter of manners, Gosson thus gaily limns the audiences of his time.
Their Majesties' Servants (Volume 1 of 3)|John Doran

He limns England as it was, and as it is; and asks the aristocratic and the millocrat if they are not ashamed of their deeds?
Homes and haunts of the most eminent British poets, Vol. II (of 2)|William Howitt
Olivier-Rolland limns this dream of his youth, designing upon his literary canvas the picture of his own life.
Romain Rolland|Stefan Zweig
Fragment by fragment, morsel by morsel, the great Figure limns itself against the shadow of the years.
Visions and Revisions|John Cowper Powys

British Dictionary definitions for limn

limn

/ (lɪm) /

verb (tr)

to represent in drawing or painting

archaic to describe in words

an obsolete word for illuminate

Derived forms of limn

limner (ˈlɪmnə), noun

Word Origin for limn

C15: from Old French enluminer to illumine (a manuscript) from Latin inlūmināre to brighten, from lūmen light

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

limn

Origin of limn

OTHER WORDS FROM limn

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH limn

Words related to limn

How to use limn in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for limn

Derived forms of limn

Word Origin for limn