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to silver

to silver

2 5.6
To cover something with a thin layer of the shiny white metal
  • verb
  • /ˈsɪlvər/
: bañar en plata
  • Mill looks the same, all tumbled in on itself and silvered by the moonlight.
  • silvered glass
  • silvered hair
  • silvered by moonlight

Examples

  • The dark, still sleeping garden beneath her window was silvered with moonlight.

    Fiction book (1995)
  • Only the moon cast light, a cool, silvered sheen that shimmered on the grass.

    Fiction book (1999)
  • See, this in the movie is silver, and I'm thinking maybe I'll silver plate it.

  • And again, it's been silvered and then painted.

  • A breath of light from the fading moon silvered the edges of the shutters.

    Fiction book (2000)
  • A full moon silvered the oaks, the wheat-stubbled field, the tenant house where I glimpsed a shape.

    Fiction book (1998)
  • I eased myself down on the first porch step and blinked at the silvered grass, the meadow, and the trees beyond.

    Fiction book (2002)
  • The artist decided to silver the edges of the frame to give it a more elegant look.

  • They chose to silver the surface of the sculpture to enhance its reflective quality.

  • The jeweler helped her silver the pendant to make it more appealing for sale.

Synonyms

to silver-plate
vsto silver
3 6.3

To cover something with a thin layer of silver

has identical meaning but is written with a hyphen
to silverplate
vsto silver
  • Specialized
1 7.4

To put a thin layer of silver on an object

has identical meaning but is written as one word

Idioms

17 5.1

To get something very easily without having to work for it

Give up valuable family items to solve money problems

To give someone money to get a favor, often as a bribe

Compounds

silver lining
  • Informal
47 3.5

A good thing that comes from a bad situation

Silver Star
  • Formal
19 5.9

A medal that the United States military gives for brave actions in battle

silver dollar
  • Archaic
17 3.7

A coin worth one dollar made of silver often kept by collectors

17 1.1

A metal object, usually silver, given to the person who comes second in a competition

silver bullet
  • Informal
16 5.3

A simple answer that seems to fix a very hard problem quickly

15 3.8

The world of movies and the people who make them

silver spoon
  • Informal
15 3.6

A life starting in a rich family with many advantages

sterling silver
  • Specialized
9 3.6

A metal made from silver mixed with other metals for jewelry and tableware

silver tongue
  • Informal
8 7.4

A skill at speaking in a way that convinces people

Able to speak in a way that charms and persuades people

4 3.1

Items like forks and spoons that are made of another metal with a thin silver layer for use at meals

silver nitrate
  • Specialized
3 5.3

A white chemical used in photography and to stop wound infection

silver fox
  • Informal
2 7.5

An attractive, stylish older man with grey hair

2 3.4

A place where people dig to take silver from the ground

silver age
  • Literature
2 7.5

A period of strong achievement in art or culture that is less than a golden age

2 3.0

A grey color that looks shiny like silver

2 2.6

A light gray color like shiny metal

2 3.4

A light shiny blue color like the paint on a car

2 2.3

A shiny light grey color like the metal used for coins and jewelry

silver iodide
  • Specialized
2 5.1

A yellow chemical used in taking photos and to help make rain fall from clouds

family silver
  • Informal
1 6.9

Valuable things a family keeps and gives to later generations

1 5.7

An American military medal given for brave actions in battle

1 7.8

A red fox with dark fur and white tips kept for its fur

1 8.7

U.S. paper money that people could exchange for silver

1 4.5

A tree with silvery white peeling bark and drooping branches

A money system where coins are worth a set amount of silver

A white or shiny surface in a cinema for showing movies

1 5.8

A nickname for Nevada from its history of silver mining

1 4.2

A light green color with a shiny silvery look

A celebration for a couple on their 25th year of marriage

1 8.8

A storm when freezing rain covers everything in ice

1 5.1

A celebration of 25 years since an important event like a marriage or founding

coin silver
  • Archaic
1 7.0

A type of silver that is about 90 percent pure and used to make coins

1 5.8

A thin shiny layer of ice on grass or branches

1 5.1

A North American tree that grows fast and has light green leaves white underneath

1 4.1

A small salmon with a shiny silver body that lives in the northern Pacific and the Great Lakes

silver solder
  • Specialized
1 4.6

A metal filler that contains silver for joining metal parts like jewelry or pipes

nickel silver
  • Specialized
1 7.4

A metal made from copper, nickel, and zinc that looks like silver and is used for knives and forks

German silver
  • Specialized
1 7.7

A silvery metal mix of copper, zinc, and nickel that contains no silver

Covered with a very thin sheet of silver for decoration

Having silver scales on the body

silver oak
  • Australian
1 7.8

A small Australian tree with narrow grey-green hanging leaves and white or cream flowers

1 7.0

A tall evergreen tree with flat needles white or silvery underneath and a straight trunk

silver grass
  • Australian
1 8.6

A tall plant with long, shiny silver leaves that grows in fields

silver plate
  • Specialized
1 4.3

A thin layer of silver that covers another material to decorate or protect it

Having leaves that are pale grey and slightly shiny

A plant with leaves that look silver or pale

A medium to tall fir from western North America with tiered branches and orange-scented needles when crushed

A tall evergreen tree with blue-green needles and lower branches that sweep down as it ages

1 8.3

A North American tree with white bell-shaped flowers

1 8.1

A low shrub with many branches and pale grey leaves that gives shelter and food to wild animals

silver bromide
  • Specialized
1 7.0

A white or pale yellow salt that darkens in light and is used in black-and-white photography

1 8.2

A small bush with silvery leaves and white flowers

1 9.1

A climbing plant from East Asia with leaves marked silver and yellow edible fruit that cats often like

1 6.0

A small shiny fish in the United States that people catch to eat or for sport

1 3.1

Pink fatty meat from a small salmon often sold and eaten as food

1 4.2

A thin flat piece of silver metal used to make jewelry or small items

1 9.0

A strong feeling of love and connection between a mother and her child

1 5.8

A fern with pale white undersides on its leaves

silver beech
  • New Zealand
1 8.0

A tree from New Zealand with pale silvery bark

1 8.8

A coating of ice from freezing rain that makes roads and trees shiny and dangerous

1 9.9

A small bush from the Canary Islands with white flowers and silvery leaves and hairy stems

A climbing plant with fragrant greenish flowers often grown for decoration

silver chloride
  • Specialized
1 5.7

A white chemical that does not dissolve in water and is used in photography, electrochemistry, and some medicines

1 8.9

A large tree with leaves that are silver underneath often planted in parks

A tall evergreen tree from central and southern Europe with smooth grey bark and wood used for building

mild silver protein
  • Specialized
7.9

A medicine made from silver and protein that kills germs on skin or in the eye

A medium or tall fir tree from western North America with a cone shape and orange-smelling leaves when crushed

silver ash
  • Australian
9.9

An Australian tree with pale wood used for furniture

A small bush or tree with silvery leaves and small yellow fruits

6.6

A sea fish found off the Atlantic coast of North America that people eat

A plant with flat round silver seed pods used in decoration

9.9

A small silvery fish found near sandy shores of the western Atlantic

How Coated

to electroplate
  • Specialized
1 8.0
to silver
2 5.6
to coat
63 2.8

Surface Forms

silver infinitive
silvered past
silvered past participle
silvering present participle
silvers third person singular

Etymology

The verb silver comes from the old practice of covering objects with the metal silver, for example to make mirrors bright. So to 'silver' something is to make it silver in color or to cover it with silver.