twinkle

verb

/ˈtwɪŋkl/

Verb Forms

present simple I / you / we / they twinkle	/ˈtwɪŋkl/ /ˈtwɪŋkl/
he / she / it twinkles	/ˈtwɪŋklz/ /ˈtwɪŋklz/
past simple twinkled	/ˈtwɪŋkld/ /ˈtwɪŋkld/
past participle twinkled	/ˈtwɪŋkld/ /ˈtwɪŋkld/
-ing form twinkling	/ˈtwɪŋklɪŋ/ /ˈtwɪŋklɪŋ/

jump to other results

[intransitive] to shine with a light that keeps changing from bright to pale to bright again
- Stars twinkled in the sky.
- twinkling lights in the distance
Synonyms shine
shine
- gleam
- glow
- sparkle
- glisten
- shimmer
- glitter
- twinkle
- glint
These words all mean to produce or reflect light.
- shine to produce or reflect light, especially brightly:
  The sun was shining and the sky was blue.
- gleam to shine with a clear bright or pale light, especially a reflected light:
  Moonlight gleamed on the water.
- glow (often of something hot or warm) to produce a steady light that is not very bright:
  The end of his cigarette glowed red.
- sparkle to shine brightly with small flashes of light:
  The diamonds sparkled in the light.
- glisten (of something wet) to shine:
  The road glistened wet after the rain.
- shimmer to shine with a soft light that seems to shake slightly:
  Everything seemed to shimmer in the heat.
- glitter to shine brightly with small flashes of reflected light:
  The ceiling of the cathedral glittered with gold.
sparkle or glitter?There is very little difference in meaning between these two words. Glitter can sometimes suggest a lack of depth, but this is more frequent in the figurative use of glitter as a noun: the superficial glitter of show business. Sparkle is also often used to talk about light reflected off a surface, but things that produce light can also sparkle: Stars sparkled in the sky.
- twinkle to shine with a light that changes rapidly from bright to faint to bright again:
  Stars twinkled in the sky.
- glint to give small bright flashes of reflected light:
  The blade of the knife glinted in the darkness.
Patterns
- to shine/gleam/sparkle/glisten/shimmer/glitter/glint on something
- to shine/gleam/glow/sparkle/glisten/shimmer/glitter/twinkle/glint with something
- to shine/gleam/sparkle/glisten/shimmer/glitter/glint in the sunlight
- to shine/gleam/glisten/shimmer/glitter/glint in the moonlight
- the stars shine/sparkle/glitter/twinkle
- somebody’s eyes shine/gleam/glow/sparkle/glisten/glitter/twinkle/glint
- to shine/gleam/glow/glitter brightly
- to shine/gleam/glow/shimmer softly
[intransitive] if your eyes twinkle, you have a bright expression because you are happy or excited
- twinkling blue eyes
- twinkle with something Her eyes twinkled with merriment.
- twinkle at somebody His mother twinkled at him over her teacup.
Extra Examples
- Her eyes twinkled with mischief.
- His dark eyes twinkled merrily at her.

Word OriginOld English twinclian (verb), of Germanic origin.

twinkle

noun

/ˈtwɪŋkl/

[singular]

jump to other results

an expression in your eyes that shows you are happy or pleased about something
- He looked at me with a twinkle in his eye.
- There was a slight twinkle of mischief in her eyes.
Topics Feelingsc2
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
adjective
- amused
- mischievous
- wicked
- …
verb + twinkle
- notice
- see
- spot
- …
preposition
- twinkle of
phrases
- a twinkle in somebody’s eye
See full entry
a small light that keeps changing from bright to pale to bright again
- the twinkle of stars
- the twinkle of the harbour lights in the distance

Word OriginOld English twinclian (verb), of Germanic origin.