spangle

American  

[spang-guhl] / ˈspæŋ gəl /

noun

spangles plural

1. a small, thin, often circular piece of glittering metal or other material, used especially for decorating garments.

2. any small, bright drop, object, spot, or the like.

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verb (used with object)

spangled, spangling

1. to decorate with spangles.

2. to sprinkle or stud with small, bright pieces, objects, spots, etc.

verb (used without object)

spangled, spangling

1. to glitter with or like spangles.

spangle British  

/ ˈspæŋɡəl /

noun

1. a small thin piece of metal or other shiny material used as a decoration, esp on clothes; sequin

2. any glittering or shiny spot or object

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verb

1. (intr) to glitter or shine with or like spangles

2. (tr) to decorate or cover with spangles

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• spangly
  adjective
• unspangled
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• spangles
  plural

Etymology

Origin of spangle

First recorded in 1375–1425; Middle English noun spangel(e), equivalent to spange “spangle” (perhaps from Middle Dutch spange, spaenge “brooch, clasp,” or from Old Norse spǫng “clasp, buckle, spangle”) + -le -le ( def. )

Explanation

Do you like your outfits to have flair? A little sparkle? Then you're probably a fan of spangles, or small, shiny decorative things like sequins. Vegas showgirls and beauty queens know all about spangle. Their outfits are usually covered in the sequins, crystals, golden beads and sparkly frills that are all considered kinds of spangles. And if you want to use spangle as a verb, go right ahead — as in, "all that glitter certainly makes those showgirls spangle up on stage."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

spangle spangles spangled spangling

It fits down to the last spangle on the jumpsuit of every self-respecting wannabe Elvis.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 11, 2023

It was always the cat eye in high-wattage spangle.

From Washington Post ● Apr. 22, 2023

Saturn has more than 60 moons, but a handful of them do more than spangle the planet’s skies.

From New York Times ● Mar. 28, 2019

The cartoonlike “action” lines that animate the cat direct your eye toward a spangle of geometric shapes the passer-by has scattered to the ground to stir up some feline hunting instinct.

From Seattle Times ● Nov. 14, 2017

I could not have escaped hunting if I had wanted to, for open seasons spangle the autumn.

From "Travels with Charley in Search of America" by John Steinbeck

Many were wearing their own sequins and spangles, sparkling spectacles, top hats, feather boas, and in a few cases, Donald Duck suits, representing stages of John’s 55-year career.

From Seattle Times ● Nov. 21, 2022

Fairgoers of all ages had spangles applied to their faces by a person claiming to be “Alaska’s first-ever glitter artist.”

From Slate ● Sep. 18, 2022

When Bob Mackie met Cher, it was a match made in spangles.

From The New Yorker ● Dec. 20, 2018

There’s a young man who sees her soul beneath the spangles, and who exudes the glowing naïveté of an American innocent newly arrived in Sodom.

From New York Times ● Aug. 5, 2018

The branches laced across overhead, almost shutting out the sky and letting through little moving spangles and sequins of sunlight, so that everything was dappled with gold and silver.

From "The Amber Spyglass" by Philip Pullman

Joining her were six-piece girl group Katseye, playing their love-it-or-hate-it viral hit Gnarly; and New York indie artist Sombr, sporting a spangled jumpsuit for his rendition of 12 to 12.

From BBC ● Feb. 1, 2026

From the 1930s to the 1950s, the group blazed a spangled, sparkling path that plenty of country acts would later follow.

From New York Times ● Oct. 20, 2023

We’ve also arrived in summer, with highs in the 80s, cloudless skies and, for some of us, tentless nights beneath the spangled heavens.

From Washington Post ● Oct. 7, 2022

Ami, who had a schedule spangled with honors classes, now expects to repeat the ninth grade.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 21, 2022

She wore her lucky bunny barrettes and a blue dress spangled with silver sequins.

From "Raymie Nightingale" by Kate DiCamillo

In addition to spangling the garden with colorful blooms beginning in late winter, native annuals are an ecological powerhouse.

From Seattle Times ● Sep. 30, 2023

Finely cut leaves of Japanese maples dangled spangling drops.

From Seattle Times ● Sep. 28, 2023

The occasional onscreen spangling of the images with onomatopoeias and impact-sparks provides reminders of Spider-Man’s vintage hand-drawn comic-book origins.

From The New Yorker ● Dec. 29, 2018

The Maromandia Damba is a beautiful vertically barred fish with vivid red spangling on the flank.

From New York Times ● Jun. 20, 2011

A good ten yards wide it was, fast-flowing and smooth, spangling and dazzling in the evening sun.

From "Watership Down: A Novel" by Richard Adams