shimmer

[ shim-er ]

See synonyms for: shimmer shimmering on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object)

to shine with or reflect a subdued, tremulous light; gleam faintly.
to appear to quiver or vibrate in faint light or while reflecting heat waves.

noun

a subdued, tremulous light or gleam.
a quivering or vibrating motion or image as produced by reflecting faint light or heat waves.

Origin of shimmer

First recorded before 1100; Middle English schimeren, s(c)hemeren, Old English scimrian; cognate with Dutch schemeren, German schimmern “to glisten”

synonym study For shimmer

1. See glisten.

Other words for shimmer

glimmer

See synonyms for shimmer on Thesaurus.com

Other words from shimmer

shim·mer·ing·ly, adverb
un·shim·mer·ing, adjective
un·shim·mer·ing·ly, adverb

Words Nearby shimmer

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

How to use shimmer in a sentence

Or, in the desert, when the ground is hot, and air is cool, and there is air turbulence, it might cause a shimmer at the horizon that looks like a pool of water.
Want art you can’t look away from? These 5 visual illusions will entrance your mind | Corinne Iozzio | July 21, 2021 | Popular-Science
The moon was coming up, and its mystic shimmer was casting a million lights across the distant, restless water.
The Awakening and Selected Short Stories | Kate Chopin
He saw the tips of the fir trees shimmer, and heard them whisper as the breeze turned their needles towards the light.
Three More John Silence Stories | Algernon Blackwood
The golden shimmer of Edna's satin gown spread in rich folds on either side of her.
The Awakening and Selected Short Stories | Kate Chopin
She looked down, noticing the black line of his leg moving in and out so close to her against the yellow shimmer of her gown.
The Awakening and Selected Short Stories | Kate Chopin

Farther down the river there was a flash of something white amidst the pale green shimmer of the flood.
The Gold Trail | Harold Bindloss

British Dictionary definitions for shimmer

shimmer

/ (ˈʃɪmə) /

verb

(intr) to shine with a glistening or tremulous light

noun

a faint, glistening, or tremulous light

Origin of shimmer

Old English scimerian; related to Middle Low German schēmeren to grow dark, Old Norse skimi brightness

Derived forms of shimmer

shimmering, adjective
shimmeringly, adverb

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

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