twinkle

Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English 5++朗文当代英语 5++LDOCE 5++朗文 5++twin·kle1 /ˈtwɪŋkəl/ verb [intransitive] 1 SHINEif a star or light twinkles, it shines in the dark with an unsteady light 闪烁，闪耀 stars twinkling in the sky 天空中闪烁的星星 I saw lights twinkling in the little town below us. 我看到我们下面的小镇灯火闪烁。► see thesaurus at shine2 HAPPYif someone’s eyes twinkle, they have a happy expression 〔眼睛〕闪闪发光twinkle with Her eyes twinkled with amusement. 她的双眼闪耀着愉悦的光芒。→ See Verb table

Examples from the Corpus

twinkle• The lights of the town twinkled beyond the desert.• Votive candles twinkle in every room.• Over her shoulder, the stars twinkled in the black sky.• From it one could see lights twinkling in the little town below, and fishing-boats with lights at sea.• Below them the lights of the town twinkled unconcernedly on.• He grinned, his eyes twinkling wetly.• The castle-like stretch to interior sky twinkling with crystal lights.• His smile broadened and his eyes twinkled with whimsy.twinkle with• "I'd love to meet him, " Christine said, her eyes twinkling with delight.twinkle2 noun [countable usually singular] 1 a twinkle in your eye HAPPYan expression in your eyes that shows you are happy or amused 〔眼睛的〕闪烁；欣喜的神情 a kindly, white-haired old gentleman with a twinkle in his eye 一位慈祥可亲、目光炯炯有神的白发老先生2. SHINEa small bright shining light that becomes brighter and then fainter 闪烁的光

Examples from the Corpus

twinkle• I do not have any twinkle in my eyes.• His leonine aspect and the mischievous twinkle in his eye made his appearance as arresting as his personality.• There was no twinkle in her eyes and no coy smile on her lips.• It was around this time that the twinkle in the planner's eye was transformed into a 20-storey tower-block.Origin twinkle1 Old English twinclian

twin·kle1 verbtwinkle2 nounChineseSyllable

a light if or twinkles, Corpus star it

Twinkle
ˌTwinkle, ˌtwinkle, ˌlittle ˈstar

a nursery rhyme (=an old song or poem for children:) Twinkle, twinkle, little star,/How I wonder what you are./Up above the world so high,/Like a diamond in the sky.

twinkle

twin‧kle¹ /ˈtwɪŋkəl/

verb [intransitive]

Language: Old English
Origin: twinclian

1. if a star or light twinkles, it shines in the dark with an unsteady light:

stars twinkling in the sky

I saw lights twinkling in the little town below us.
2. if someone’s eyes twinkle, they have a happy expression
twinkle with

Her eyes twinkled with amusement.

THESAURUS

■ to produce light
   ▪ shine to produce bright light: The sun was shining.
   ▪ flash to shine brightly for a very short time, or to shine on and off very quickly many times: Lightning flashed across the sky. | The police car’s lights were flashing.
   ▪ glare to shine with a very strong light which hurts your eyes: The sun glared in her eyes.
   ▪ flicker to shine with an unsteady light – used about a flame or light: The candle flickered and went out.
   ▪ twinkle if stars or lights twinkle, they shine in the dark in a way that seems to change from bright to faint, especially because you are a long way away from them: stars twinkling in the sky | The harbour lights twinkled in the distance.
   ▪ glow especially literary to shine with a warm soft light: Lights glowed in the windows.
   ▪ blaze literary to shine very brightly: The lights of the factory were still blazing.

twinkle²

noun [countable usually singular]
1. a twinkle in your eye an expression in your eyes that shows you are happy or amused:

a kindly, white-haired old gentleman with a twinkle in his eye
2. a small bright shining light that becomes brighter and then fainter

verb,

noun

twin·kle

BrE

/ˈtwɪŋkl/

🔊

NAmE

/ˈtwɪŋkl/

🔊

verb

present simple - I / you / we / they

twinkle

BrE

/ˈtwɪŋkl/

🔊

NAmE

/ˈtwɪŋkl/

🔊

present simple - he / she / it

twinkles

BrE

/ˈtwɪŋklz/

🔊

NAmE

/ˈtwɪŋklz/

🔊

past simple

twinkled

BrE

/ˈtwɪŋkld/

🔊

NAmE

/ˈtwɪŋkld/

🔊

past participle

twinkled

BrE

/ˈtwɪŋkld/

🔊

NAmE

/ˈtwɪŋkld/

🔊

-ing form

twinkling

BrE

/ˈtwɪŋklɪŋ/

🔊

NAmE

/ˈtwɪŋklɪŋ/

🔊

[intransitive]

to shine with a light that keeps changing from bright to faint to bright again 闪耀；闪烁

◆Stars twinkled in the sky. 星星在天空中闪烁。

🔊

◆twinkling lights in the distance远处闪耀的点点灯光

<titled tranID="29" status="1">shine</titled>gleam ◇ glow ◇ sparkle ◇ glisten ◇ shimmer ◇ glitter ◇ twinkle ◇ glint

These words all mean to produce or reflect light. 以上各词均含发光、反光之义。

shine to produce or reflect light, especially brightly 指发光、反光、照耀：◆The sun was shining and the sky was blue. 阳光灿烂，天空一片蓝。
gleam to shine with a clear bright or pale light, especially a reflected light 指闪烁、隐约闪光、微光反射：◆Moonlight gleamed on the water. 月光照在水面上泛起粼粼波光。
glow (often of sth hot or warm) to produce a dull steady light 常指热的物体发出微弱而稳定的光：◆The end of his cigarette glowed red. 他的烟头发着微弱的红光。
sparkle to shine brightly with small flashes of light 指闪烁、闪耀：◆The diamonds sparkled in the light. 钻石在灯光下闪闪发亮。
glisten (of sth wet) to shine 指湿物闪光、闪亮：◆The road glistened wet after the rain. 雨后的道路润泽闪亮。
shimmer to shine with a soft light that seems to shake slightly 指发出微弱的闪光、闪烁：◆Everything seemed to shimmer in the heat. 在高温下所有的东西都好像在闪光。
glitter to shine brightly with small flashes of reflected light 指闪亮、闪耀：◆The ceiling of the cathedral glittered with gold. 大教堂的天花板金光闪闪。

sparkle or glitter? 用 sparkle 还是 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. 以上两词在意义上几乎没有差别。glitter 有时暗指缺乏深度，但这较常在 glitter 作名词时作比喻义时用：◆the superficial glitter of show business 表面上光彩迷人的演艺业 Sparkle is also often used to talk about light reflected off a surface, but things that produce light can also sparkle. * sparkle 亦常用以指物体表面反光，但物体发出亮光也可用 sparkle：◆Stars sparkled in the sky. 星星在天空中闪烁。

twinkle to shine with a light that changes rapidly from bright to faint to bright again 指一明一暗地闪耀、闪烁：◆Stars twinkled in the sky. 星星在天空中闪烁。
glint to give small bright flashes of reflected light 指微微闪光、闪亮、反光：◆The blade of the knife glinted in the darkness. 刀刃在黑暗中亮了亮。