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Webster 1913 Edition

Gleam

Gleam

,
Verb.
I.
[Cf. OE.
glem
birdlime, glue, phlegm, and E.
englaimed
.]
(Falconry)
To disgorge filth, as a hawk.

Gleam

,
Noun.
[OE.
glem
,
gleam
, AS.
glæm
, prob. akin to E.
glimmer
, and perh. to Gr. [GREEK] warm, [GREEK] to warm. Cf.
Glitter
.]
1.
A shoot of light; a small stream of light; a beam; a ray; a glimpse.
Transient unexpected
gleams
of joi.
Addison.
At last a
gleam

Of dawning light turned thitherward in haste
His [Satan’s] traveled steps.
Milton.
A glimmer, and then a
gleam
of light.
Longfellow.
2.
Brightness; splendor.
In the clear azure
gleam
the flocks are seen.
Pope.

Gleam

,
Verb.
T.
[
imp. & p. p.
Gleamed
;
p. pr. & vb. n.
Gleaming
.]
1.
To shoot, or dart, as rays of light;
as, at the dawn, light
gleams
in the east
.
Syn. – To
Gleam
,
Glimmer
,
Glitter
.
To gleam denotes a faint but distinct emission of light. To glimmer describes an indistinct and unsteady giving of light. To glitter imports a brightness that is intense, but varying. The morning light gleams upon the earth; a distant taper glimmers through the mist; a dewdrop glitters in the sun. See
Flash
.

Gleam

,
Verb.
T.
To shoot out (flashes of light, etc.).
Dying eyes
gleamed
forth their ashy lights.
Shakespeare

Webster 1828 Edition

Gleam

GLEAM

,
Noun.
[L. flamma.] The radical sense is to throw, to shoot or dart, and it may be of the same family as clamo,clamor, a shoot of the voice.
1.
A shoot of light; a beam; a ray; a small stream of light. A gleam of dawning light, metaphorically, a gleam of hope.
2.
Brightness; splendor.
In the clear azure gleam the flocks are seen.

GLEAM

,
Verb.
I.
To shoot or dart, as rays of light. At the dawn light gleams in the east.
1.
To shine; to cast light.
2.
To flash; to spread a flood of light. [Less common.]
3.
Among falconers, to disgorge filth, as a hawk.

Definition 2024

gleam

gleam

See also: glean

English

Noun

gleam ‎(plural gleams)

  1. a small or indistinct shaft or stream of light.
    • Longfellow
      A glimmer, and then a gleam of light.
  2. a glimpse or hint; an indistinct sign of something.
    The rescue workers preserved a gleam of optimism that they might still survive.
  3. brightness or shininess; splendor.
    • Alexander Pope
      In the clear azure gleam the flocks are seen.

Synonyms

Translations

Verb

gleam ‎(third-person singular simple present gleams, present participle gleaming, simple past and past participle gleamed)

  1. To shine; to glitter; to glisten.
  2. To be briefly but strongly apparent.
  3. (obsolete, falconry) To disgorge filth, as a hawk.

Synonyms

Translations

See also

References

  • “gleam” in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition, Houghton Mifflin Company, 2000.
  • “gleam” in Dictionary.com Unabridged, v1.0.1, Lexico Publishing Group, 2006.
  • "gleam" in On-line Medical Dictionary, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, 1997–2005.
  • "gleam" in WordNet 2.0, Princeton University, 2003.

Etymology

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ɡliːm/
  • Rhymes: -iːm

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