Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
😊 A lively look 🌟 To shine briefly ✨ A quick flash
to twinkle

to twinkle

26 1.5
To shine with small quick flashes of light, often in eyes or stars
  • verb
  • /ˈtwɪŋkəl/
translation icon : brillar
  • The stars began to twinkle as the sun set behind the mountains.
  • eyes twinkled
  • twinkling stars

So think about, like, what causes stars to twinkle, right?

Autoplay Next

Examples

  • Up the river, just pole our luck, eh?" She smiled at him, her black eyes twinkling with merriment.

    Fiction book (1991)

  • The lights were twinkling, and streamers and banners were draped across Main Street.

    Fiction book (1995)

  • Outside the picture windows, the city lights twinkle under a threatening violet sky.

    Fiction book (1990)

  • In the glow of those twinkling lights

    Evita (1996)

  • And I never saw anything except for a few lights twinkling and trees looming suddenly out of the dark.

    Fiction book (1993)

  • "Let's see what my little girl cooked," he said, eyes twinkling, lifting covers off pots.

    Fiction book (1994)

  • "How've you been?" he asked, eyes twinkling, after the applause that followed her entrance.

    Fiction book (1991)

  • Fray Bernardo's blue eyes twinkled as he turned to her.

    Fiction book (1995)

  • The clouds were gliding unusually fast on this night, and the stars twinkled brightly.

    Academic text (2006)

  • "Clemens narrowed his bushy brows, and his eyes twinkled with mischievous delight.

    Fiction book (1992)

Synonyms

to glow
vsto twinkle
161 1.2

To shine with a steady soft light

contrasts by being intermittent and sparkly rather than steady
to flash
vsto twinkle
89 1.0

To give a sudden short bright light

is about repeated small sparkles, not a single sudden burst
to flicker
vsto twinkle
60 3.6

Move or shine in quick unsteady ways

emphasizes lively sparkle rather than only unsteady motion
to shimmer
vsto twinkle
51 4.3

To shine with a soft, slightly moving light

uses clearer, lively flickers rather than only soft wavering
to blink
vsto twinkle
49 2.0

To flash on and off quickly like a light

is more about steady playful sparkle than just switching
to sparkle
vsto twinkle
26 1.0

To shine with small bright flashes of light

is like this but can be gentler and less bright
to flare
vsto twinkle
18 4.2

To burn or shine with a sudden bright light

is less intense and less likely to be a single strong blaze
to wink
vsto twinkle
13 2.5

To shine on and off quickly like a small light

is used more for gentle, charming sparkle especially in eyes
to glimmer
vsto twinkle
12 3.9

To shine with a weak, unsteady light

is brighter and more sparkling rather than merely faint
to flick
vsto twinkle
  • UK
11 3.7

To go on and off quickly as a light or screen

is similar but often suggests more pleasant or lively sparkle
to scintillate
vsto twinkle
2 8.5

To give off small bright flashes of light

is similar but often implies softer, less intense sparkle
to glister
vsto twinkle
  • Archaic
1 8.8

To shine with small bright flashes

focuses more on small flickers rather than continuous gleam
to twire
vsto twinkle
  • Archaic
9.9

To shine with a small quick flicker of light

has identical meaning and functions as an alternative form

Antonyms

to fade
531 1.2

To slowly become less visible, bright, or loud

dim
62 1.0

Not bright and having only a little light

How Bright

to dazzle
6 4.1
glitter
27 1.0
to sparkle
26 1.0
to twinkle
26 1.5
to flicker
60 3.6
to glimmer
12 3.9

Surface Forms

twinkle infinitive
twinkled past
twinkled past participle
twinkling present participle
twinkles third person singular

Etymology

Twinkle comes from the old English twincan, which meant 'shine quickly' and was probably made to copy a quick flash. So to twinkle is to flash or sparkle quickly, or for eyes or lights to look lively.