beaming
Americanadjective
-
radiant; bright.
-
smiling brightly; cheerful.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of beaming
Explanation
If an object is beaming, it's glowing with light, but if a person is beaming, they're more likely to be smiling brightly. Your car's beaming headlights or the beaming eyes of your cat, glowing in the dark, are bright and radiant. That's where the other meaning of beaming, cheerful and bright, comes from. A beaming smile glows and shines with true joy. Beaming comes from the verb beam, "emit rays of light."
Vocabulary lists containing beaming
All Aglow: Light Lingo
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myPerspectives 8.1
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"La Vida Robot" and "Reading, Writing and... Recreation"
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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.
A beaming Winston Churchill stood on the balcony of a government building and waved his usual V-for-victory sign.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 7, 2026
"You are my god," Sanae Takaichi, a hard rock enthusiast, told the band's drummer Ian Paice, beaming as she handed him a pair of signed Japanese-made drumsticks.
From BBC • Apr. 11, 2026
The big draw of space for data centers is power supply, with the option of synchronizing satellites to the sun's orbit to ensure constant light beaming onto solar panels.
From Barron's • Mar. 17, 2026
Anderson was beaming and breathless as he held the award, joined by lead actor Leonardo DiCaprio and the rest of the cast.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 15, 2026
She forgot all about her interview with Joey, who didn’t seem to mind; he stood next to me, his arm around my shoulders, beaming.
From "Lawn Boy Returns" by Gary Paulsen
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.
