gleam

Etymology

• (noun) Originates before the first millennium from Middle English gleme, from Old English glæm, from Proto-Germanic *glaimiz; see Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰelh₃-.
• (verb) Derived from the Middle English noun form before the first millennium.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɡliːm/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -iːm

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.

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.

See also

• leam

References

• “gleam” in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 4th edition, Boston, Mass.: Houghton Mifflin, 2000, →ISBN.
• “gleam” in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.
• "gleam" in On-line Medical Dictionary, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, 1997–2005.
• "gleam" in WordNet 2.0, Princeton University, 2003.

Anagrams

• Gamel, megal-