iridescent

adjective ir·i·des·cent \ ˌir-ə-ˈde-sᵊnt \

|Updated on: 18 Jun 2018

Editor's Note: Did You Know?

Definition of iridescent

: having or exhibiting iridescence

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iridescently

adverb

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Recent Examples of iridescent from the Web

Jimmy Gonzalez, a titan of Tejano music, dies in San Antonio Schlapman nailed her flared and iridescent jumpsuit.

— carolina gonzales, Houston Chronicle, "Carrie Underwood and Kelly Clarkson hit up the CMT Music Awards: Best and worst dressed celebrities," 6 June 2018
In the early days, residents on her block in Malvern’s Charlestown Oaks development stood on their lawns, mouths agape, trying to take a picture of the iridescent bird whose arrival defied explanation.

— vinny vella, Philly.com, "In Malvern, 'Harry the Peacock' has found a home," 4 June 2018
In one case, McGrath even echoed an iridescent Margiela suit by drenching the model’s ultraviolet lips in glitter and gloss, turning her pout into a facsimile of a high-end holograph.

— lynn yaeger, Vogue, "Why Shocking Neon Makeup Should Be Your Summer Beauty Strategy," 31 May 2018
Qingqing Cao’s collection looked dreamy in beautiful sunset colors and iridescent fabrics.

— kristin larson, chicagotribune.com, "Our favorite looks from the SAIC fashion show," 23 May 2018
The rest of the day is a montage of iridescent water and Tintoretto sky, wisecracks and tattoos and lionfish.

— ben lowy, Smithsonian, "The Lionfish Have Invaded, But a Ragtag Army of Divers and Chefs Are Fighting Back," 23 May 2018
The study also notes that two types of flatworm in the Diversibipalium genus — one black, found in France, and an iridescent blue version found on the island of Mayotte — are probably new species.

— chris ciaccia, Fox News, "Massive 18-inch hammerhead worms are invading France," 23 May 2018
The Big Green Easy’’ and iridescent costumes for the witches that would not be out of place at a Mardi Gras parade.

— don aucoin, BostonGlobe.com, "An exuberant journey down the yellow brick road in ‘The Wiz’," 22 May 2018
John Galliano at Maison Margiela — the perennial rebel of the couture scene — opted for attention-grabbing iridescent swim caps.

— peter ash lee, The Cut, "Couture, Simplified," 2 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'iridescent.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Did You Know?

Iris, the Greek goddess of the rainbow, took messages from Mount Olympus to earth, and from gods to mortals or other gods, using the rainbow as her stairway. Iridescence is thus the glowing, shifting, colorful quality of a rainbow, also seen in an opal, a light oil slick, a butterfly wing, or the mother-of-pearl that lines an oyster shell.