sheen
1 Americannoun
noun
-
a gleaming or glistening brightness; lustre
-
poetic splendid clothing
adjective
Related Words
See polish.
Other Word Forms
- sheenful adjective
- sheenless adjective
- sheenly adverb
- sheeny adjective
Etymology
Origin of sheen
First recorded before 900; (adjective) Middle English sheene “beautiful, bright, shining,” Old English scēne; cognate with German schön; (verb) Middle English s(c)henen, derivative of the adjective; (noun) derivative of the adjective
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.
Later, the counter began to crowd with flaky croissants, sticky pastry, brioches with amber sheen.
From Salon • Feb. 5, 2026
With its Miyazaki-inflected aesthetic rooted in hand-stylized humans and a juxtaposition of natural-world splendor with the sheen of artificial enhancements, “Arco” is a sweet yet slight sci-fi vision, an “E.T.” riff with a European sensibility.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 23, 2026
Overall the score has a bright, likable pop sheen that befits the material.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 31, 2025
On some counts, Wilson isn’t wrong: Lululemon’s U.S. sales are declining as the athleisure “it” label loses its sheen.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 29, 2025
He could see the grey line as it came dangling down, and he thought it had a faint silver sheen.
From "The Two Towers" by J. R. R. Tolkien
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.
