tinsel

[ tin-suhl ]
See synonyms for: tinseltinseledtinselingtinselled on Thesaurus.com

noun
  1. a glittering metallic substance, as copper or brass, in thin sheets, used in pieces, strips, threads, etc., to produce a sparkling effect cheaply.

  2. a metallic yarn, usually wrapped around a core yarn of silk, rayon, or cotton, for weaving brocade or lamé.

  1. anything showy or attractive with little or no real worth; showy pretense: The actress was tired of the fantasy and tinsel of her life.

  2. Obsolete. a fabric, formerly in use, of silk or wool interwoven with threads of gold, silver, or, later, copper.

adjective
  1. consisting of or containing tinsel.

verb (used with object),tin·seled, tin·sel·ing or (especially British) tin·selled, tin·sel·ling.
  1. to adorn with tinsel.

  2. to adorn with anything glittering.

  1. to make showy or gaudy.

Origin of tinsel

1
First recorded in 1495–1505; by shortening of Middle French estincelle (Old French estincele ) “a spark, flash,” from Vulgar Latin stincilla, unrecorded variant of Latin scintilla; first used attributively in phrases tinsel satin, tinsel cloth;see scintilla

Other words from tinsel

  • tin·sel·like, adjective
  • o·ver·tin·sel, verb (used with object), o·ver·tin·seled, o·ver·tin·sel·ing or (especially British) o·ver·tin·selled, o·ver·tin·sel·ling.
  • un·tin·seled, adjective
  • un·tin·selled, adjective

Words Nearby tinsel

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use tinsel in a sentence

  • Stripped of its parade and tinsel, however, this theory is nothing but the old pantheism revived.

    Gospel Philosophy | J. H. Ward
  • Clearly the sans-culotte of Brussels was a mere tinsel imitation of the genuine article at Paris.

    Belgium | George W. T. (George William Thomson) Omond
  • Body greenish herl of Peacock,—ribbed with gold tinsel,—wrapt with red silk,—red hackle over all.

    The Teesdale Angler | R Lakeland
  • It was Jim Carter, whose suit of cotton batting, decorated with tinsel and cedar, was most becoming.

    The Story of the Big Front Door | Mary Finley Leonard
  • The harness is extremely gay, painted in all colours, red and blue and yellow, and made up with bits of tinsel and glitter.

British Dictionary definitions for tinsel

tinsel

/ (ˈtɪnsəl) /


noun
  1. a decoration consisting of a piece of string with thin strips of metal foil attached along its length

  2. a yarn or fabric interwoven with strands of glittering thread

  1. anything cheap, showy, and gaudy

verb-sels, -selling or -selled or US -sels, -seling or -seled (tr)
  1. to decorate with or as if with tinsel: snow tinsels the trees

  2. to give a gaudy appearance to

adjective
  1. made of or decorated with tinsel

  2. showily but cheaply attractive; gaudy

Origin of tinsel

1
C16: from Old French estincele a spark, from Latin scintilla; compare stencil

Derived forms of tinsel

  • tinsel-like, adjective
  • tinselly, adjective

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