gloaming

noun

ˈglō-miŋ How to pronounce gloaming (audio)
Definition of gloamingnext
1
as in dusk
a time or place of little or no light lovers would often retreat to the gloaming of the park's many secluded recesses to steal a kiss

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in night
the time from when the sun begins to set to the onset of total darkness with the gloaming came the familiar call of the whip-poor-will

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of gloaming The chapel seemed to exist in a perpetual gloaming, the air hushed and cool. — Kristin Idaszak, Longreads, 22 Oct. 2026 The mirror’s surface turned suddenly iridescent, like an oil slick beneath a gloaming. — Carly Tagen-Dye, PEOPLE, 22 Jan. 2026 There is an excellent chance that one of the world’s two best golfers will be sliding his arms into a green jacket in the sweet gloaming of Sunday evening just outside the Augusta National clubhouse. — Jason Sobel, New York Times, 7 Apr. 2025 Just across the street was a second landfill, belonging to a Texas company called Weeks Environmental, whose own black mountain—nearly ten million additional barrels of waste—rose into the Texas gloaming. — Justin Nobel, Harper's Magazine, 2 Jan. 2025 So imagine everyone’s delight when Bennifer reemerged from the gloaming after Lopez split with fiance Alex Rodriguez. — Travis M. Andrews, Washington Post, 17 July 2022 The game down on the field seems to be played in the gloaming. — Scott Ostler, San Francisco Chronicle, 30 Jan. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gloaming
  1. dusk
  2. night
  3. shadows
  4. sunset
  5. dark
  6. twilight
  7. blackness
  8. evening
Noun
  • Unlike many mosquito species that bite mostly at dawn and dusk, the mosquitoes carrying dengue feed aggressively during daytime hours and thrive in humid residential environments.
    — Khloe Quill, FOXNews.com, 2 Nov. 2026
  • As dusks settle in over the field, family and friends cheer for Patriot High School girls flag football team during the team’s first CIF Playoff win.
    — Staff Photographer, Los Angeles Times, 1 Nov. 2026
Definition of dusk
Noun
  • Russia's defense ministry said Sunday that its forces destroyed 142 Ukrainian drones during the night.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 9 Nov. 2026
  • Evgeni Malkin had two assists and Arturs Silovs stopped 20 shots for the Penguins, who broke a four-game skid Saturday night against the Kings in the opener of their California trip.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 9 Nov. 2026
Definition of night
Noun
  • If there's snow on the ground, check for shadows made by Venus's light.
    — Joe Rao, Space.com, 1 Nov. 2026
  • Rattlesnakes are lazy hunters that wait in the shadows for prey to approach.
    — RJ Mackenzie, Popular Science, 1 Nov. 2026
Definition of shadows
Noun
  • Dedicated reading lights, meanwhile, work with ambient lighting to ensure the tent is fully illuminated after sunset.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 4 Nov. 2026
  • He’s built a nationalist project that his opponents feared — right up until sunset yesterday, when the first early votes were counted in the Indianapolis suburbs.
    — David Weigel, semafor.com, 4 Nov. 2026
Definition of sunset
Noun
  • Animal control officials believe the animal would not have survived the night had he not been found before dark.
    — Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 28 Oct. 2026
  • Next shows for Artistic Home The Artistic Home theater company is bringing the long-dark Lookingglass Studio Theatre back to life, though.
    — Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune, 27 Oct. 2026
Definition of dark
Noun
  • Pieces are held together by large C clamps as the bridge prepares to slip into its twilight stage.
    — Doug Ross, Chicago Tribune, 29 Oct. 2026
  • On the first night of the charter, Kerry sends Alex to accompany the guests on their twilight kayak excursion, during which the guests are spared any paddling.
    — Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 27 Oct. 2026
Definition of twilight
Noun
  • Passengers will experience a few minutes of weightlessness and get to see the curve of Earth against the blackness of space before coming down for a runway landing back at Spaceport America.
    — Mike Wall, Space.com, 30 Oct. 2026
  • Nori of a perfect blackness, death-like, without the green glints of more common seaweed.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of blackness
Noun
  • One honest update may do more than another evening of reluctant cooperation.
    — Tarot.com, Baltimore Sun, 3 Nov. 2026
  • The court denied taking up the Justice Department's appeal on Monday evening, just hours after it was filed.
    — Jude Joffe-Block, NPR, 2 Nov. 2026
Definition of evening

Browse Nearby Words

glitzy
gloaming
gloamings
See all Nearby Words

Podcast

Cite this Entry

“Gloaming.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gloaming. Accessed 11 Nov. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of valorous

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

31 Useful Rhetorical Devices

More Commonly Misspelled Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Longest Long Words List

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
woman sitting on floor holding book in front of her face on pink background
Famous Novels, Last Lines Quiz Needless to say, spoiler alert.
See All