Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

glisten

/ˈɡlɪsən/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.25 in modern English

Syllables: glis-ten
IPA: /ˈɡlɪsən/

8

Scrabble Score

7

Letters

2

Syllables

7

Unique Chars

Meaning

verb

To reflect light with a glittering luster; to sparkle, coruscate, glint or flash.

Intransitive verb

noun

A glistening shine from a wet surface.

Example Sentences

"The sun was fierce, the land seemed to glisten and drip with steam."
"In his clear northern flesh and his fair hair was a glisten like sunshine refracted through crystals of ice."

Etymology

From Middle English glisnen, glistnen, from Old English glisnian, itself from Proto-West Germanic *glisnōn, while ultimately deriving from Proto-Germanic *glisnōną.

Origin

Source language: Middle English

Word Breakdown

Root: *ǵʰley-, glisnen, glisnian, *glisnōn, *glisnōną

Usage

Intransitive verb

Inflected Forms

glistens (present, singular) glistening (participle, present) glistened (participle, past) glistened (past) glistens (plural)

Derived Forms

aglisten beglisten glistener glisteny

Synonyms

coruscate flash gleam glitter glisten luster sheen shimmer shine sparkle

Homonyms

glisson

Rhymes With

listen christen nissen sisson ison brisson bisson rison sison brison frison tison

Questions

How do you pronounce glisten?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈɡlɪsən/.
What does glisten mean?: To reflect light with a glittering luster; to sparkle, coruscate, glint or flash.
Where does glisten come from?: It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce glisten

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “glisten”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈɡlɪsən/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “glisten”.
Repeat and practice — Say “glisten” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.