glittering

adjective

glit·​ter·​ing ˈgli-tə-riŋ 

1

a

: shining with many bright points of light

Every few days a little glittering aeroplane appeared in the sky among the clouds and the circling hawks.

—Doris Lessing

And where the water had been trickling over and spurting through the dam there was now a glittering wall of icicles …

—C. S. Lewis

b

: shining with strong emotion

… after being misdirected almost consistently, she goes out in glory, with glittering eyes and a lewd smile.

—Pauline Kael

2

: brilliantly or showily impressive : dazzling

a glittering career

… the company today caters a glittering array of premiere social and corporate galas, from Poughkeepsie to Palm Beach.

—Robert Masello

also : superficially attractive or exciting

… they left behind the glittering social life of Orlando …

—Douglas Frantz et al.

glitteringly

ˈgli-tə-riŋ-lē 

adverb

His libretto is very bare, a skeleton of short, clear phrases on to which he has grafted slivers of music glitteringly alive thanks to his fine ear for sound.

—Richard Fairman

Examples of glittering in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Darke, 39, complemented him in a glittering sequin gown with an illusion neckline and intricate beading. —Hedy Phillips, Peoplemag, 16 June 2024

Barcelona’s wine country is absolutely glittering, and Andreu Rebés’ cinematography does a beautiful job of capturing it on screen. —Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 26 June 2024

None of it fazed Brent Street, the dance group that enjoyed a glittering audition Tuesday night (June 25) on America’s Got Talent. —Lars Brandle, Billboard, 26 June 2024

Saturday night, by the glow of a glittering Eiffel Tower, British Vogue’s Chioma Nnadi and Mugler’s Casey Cadwallader hosted a spectacular dinner to kick off Vogue World: Paris and the Haute Couture Week. —Ian Malone, Vogue, 25 June 2024

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a