twinkle
Americanverb (used without object)
-
twinkles,
present (3rd person singular)
-
twinkled,
past participle, past
-
twinkling
present participle
-
to shine with a flickering gleam of light, as a star or distant light.
-
to sparkle in the light.
The diamond on her finger twinkled in the firelight.
-
(of the eyes) to be bright with amusement, pleasure, etc.
-
to move flutteringly and quickly, as flashes of light; flit.
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Archaic. to wink; blink.
verb (used with object)
-
twinkles,
present (3rd person singular)
-
twinkled,
past participle, past
-
twinkling
present participle
-
to emit (light) in intermittent gleams or flashes.
-
Archaic. to wink (the eyes or eyelids).
noun
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twinkles
plural
-
a flickering or intermittent brightness or light.
-
a scintillating brightness in the eyes; sparkle.
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the time required for a wink; a twinkling.
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Archaic. a wink.
verb
-
to emit or reflect light in a flickering manner; shine brightly and intermittently; sparkle
twinkling stars
-
(of the eyes) to sparkle, esp with amusement or delight
-
rare to move about quickly
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rare (also tr) to wink (the eyes); blink
noun
-
an intermittent gleam of light; flickering brightness; sparkle or glimmer
-
an instant
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a rare word for wink 1
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
twinklesimple
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twinklessimple
-
have twinkledperfect
-
has twinkledperfect
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am twinklingprogressive
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are twinklingprogressive
-
is twinklingprogressive
-
have been twinklingperfect progressive
-
has been twinklingperfect progressive
Past
-
twinkledsimple
-
had twinkledperfect
-
was twinklingprogressive
-
were twinklingprogressive
-
had been twinklingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of twinkle
before 900; Middle English twinklen (v.), Old English twinclian; see twink, -le
Explanation
To twinkle is to sparkle and shine with a flickering light. A night sky in a dark place appears to be filled with stars that twinkle, almost like diamonds in the sky. Stars aren't the only things that twinkle. People whose eyes seem to glimmer with a magical or playful charm can be described as having a twinkle in their eyes. Holiday lights that flicker and flash, gemstones that sparkle in the light, and shimmering fairy lights strung across a patio are examples of other things that twinkle.
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.
See Examples For:
With a twinkle in his eye, he adds: "I have still got that sense of adventure."
From BBC ● Oct. 31, 2026
It’s something that should have come up at your onboarding with the financial planner, even if you signed up with them a long time ago and retirement was only a twinkle in your eye.
From MarketWatch ● May 26, 2026
Yang, twinkle in her eye, kept us on our toes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 17, 2026
Roberts laughed, but the twinkle in his eye was genuine.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 10, 2026
And, as she passed through the trees, it might have appeared to a distant observer that she seemed to twinkle, on and off and off and on, like a tiny star.
From "Stardust" by Neil Gaiman
They looked up at Jeff, with the kind of twinkles in their eyes that kids save for grandparents.
From New York Times ● Dec. 15, 2022
Washington’s Bavarian-style village twinkles throughout winter, with millions of candy-colored lights adorning trees and traditional, snow-topped timber-framed buildings.
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 14, 2022
To reach phones on the ground, the satellite uses a large, reflective antenna roughly the size of a racquetball court that twinkles brightly as it orbits.
From Science Magazine ● Nov. 13, 2022
At the top of each hour while lit, it twinkles thanks to 20,000 flashing bulbs.
From Reuters ● Sep. 13, 2022
I look into her eye, which twinkles back at me.
From "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen
Suddenly, he grabbed my hand, and we were dancing under the moonlight while the trees twinkled with floating bulbs and antique street lamps lit up as if on cue.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 18, 2024
Lights twinkled around doorways, signs declared “Happy Hanukkah,” and large inflatables obstructed parts of the hallway.
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 7, 2023
Below it, lights twinkled in the town of Lone Pine 8,000 feet below.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 9, 2023
All eyes focused on her, in part, because they couldn’t help it as she strode the sideline in a head-to-toe, sparkling, gold-and-black tiger-striped pantsuit that twinkled with every movement.
From Washington Post ● Apr. 2, 2023
Her eyes twinkled like the fairy godmother’s in Cinderella.
From "Three Little Words: A Memoir" by Ashley Rhodes-Courter
Digital creators also walked the red carpet twinkling and sparkling in cultures and sculpted dresses.
From BBC ● May 10, 2026
The store’s front facade was wrapped in a giant plaid scarf made of 126,000 twinkling Christmas lights.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 27, 2026
The audience rehashed its hunches, they circled potential suspects, they stared at a static image of a horrific crime scene, awash in twinkling moonlight.
From Slate ● Feb. 23, 2026
He used the giant telescope to capture the twinkling of Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 17, 2026
He was fat almost to the point of roundness, clean-shaven, and had a merry-looking face with small, twinkling eyes.
From "Lupita Mañana" by Patricia Beatty
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