gilded

adjective

gild·​ed ˈgil-dəd 

1

: covered or tinged with gold or a golden color

gilded icons

The reception room, just off the entryway, features colorful wall and ceiling decorations and a gilded overmantel mirror and matching cornices.

—Stephen May

2

: having a background of wealth and luxury : prosperous, luxurious

Emily Post was raised among New York's gilded elite.

—Susan Berfield

… despite the upper-crust background and the gilded résumé, Bonham Carter is a pretty modern chick off stage.

—Elizabeth Gleick

Examples of gilded in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The bathroom was particularly fabulous, with its slim burgundy tiles, back-to-back sink situation, rounded gilded mirrors and vast waterfall shower. —Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 23 Apr. 2026

But what appeared at the time as an act of total randomness actually spoke to a wider sense of release for a 20-something who had grown tired of his gilded cage. —Ben Church, CNN Money, 16 Apr. 2026

On property, subtle gilded influences abound—like a signature scent inspired by Astor’s mother—that seamlessly integrate with the modern, refined sensibility of the global brand. —Travel + Leisure Editors, Travel + Leisure, 15 Apr. 2026

And loyalty became a gilded cage. —Christopher Elliott, USA Today, 5 Apr. 2026

Word History

Etymology

from past participle of gild entry 1

First Known Use

1540, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for gilded

• builded