What does "gleam" mean?
Gleam: 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.
Additional senses
- 2.Brightness; splendor. In the clear azure gleam the flocks are seen. Pope.
- 3.To shoot, or dart, as rays of light; as, at the dawn, light gleams in the east.
- 4.To shine; to cast light; to 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.
- 5.To shoot out (flashes of light, etc.). Dying eyes gleamed forth their ashy lights. Shak.
Sources
- Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).
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- Published: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00 · Modified: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00