gloss

CEFRB2

/ɡlɒs/

noun · verb

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    noun

    A shiny surface or a brief explanation of a word.

  2. 02

    noun

    Extra detail

    A superficially or deceptively attractive appearance.

Examples

  • The girl bought some lip gloss at the convenience store.

  • I can't find my lip gloss.

At a glance

Sits at B2 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
2
Citations
5
Synonyms
5

Deep Dive

noun

Extra meanings

  1. To give a gloss or sheen to.

  2. A surface shine or luster.

verb

Extra meaning

  1. To make (something) attractive by deception

More examples

In context

  • To me more dear, congenial to my heart, / One native charm than all the gloss of art.

  • Dictionary entries comprise two essential parts, the headword ('lemma') and the author's explanation ('gloss').

  • All this, without a gloss or comment, / He would unriddle in a moment.

Synonyms

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

The painter applied a final blank to the table to give it a shiny finish.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Origin

noun

Probably from a North Germanic language, compare Icelandic glossi (“spark, flame”), glossa (“to flame”); or perhaps from dialectal Dutch gloos (“a glow, flare”), related to West Frisian gloeze (“a glow”), Middle Low German glȫsen (“to smoulder, glow”), German glosen (“to smoulder”); ultimately from Proto-Germanic *glus- (“to glow, shine”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰel- (“to flourish; be green or yellow”). More at glow.