chatoyant
Americanadjective
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changing in luster or color.
chatoyant silk.
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Jewelry. reflecting a single streak of light when cut in a cabochon.
noun
adjective
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having changeable lustre; twinkling
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(of a gem, esp a cabochon) displaying a band of light reflected off inclusions of other minerals
noun
Other Word Forms
- chatoyance noun
- chatoyancy noun
Etymology
Origin of chatoyant
First recorded in 1790–1800; from French, present participle of chatoyer “to change luster like a cat's eye,” derivative of chat “cat”; cf. cat ( def. )
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
He shook himself free and stood straight, his jaws hard and his eyes, absorbing what light there was from the stars, chatoyant.
From A Splendid Hazard by MacGrath, Harold
Shot, shot, adj. having a changeable colour, chatoyant, as silk, alpaca, &c.
From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 4 of 4: S-Z and supplements) by Various
The chatoyant eyes of the leopard stared back, a flicker of restlessness in their brilliant yellow deeps.
From The Adventures of Kathlyn by MacGrath, Harold
While Nekhludoff was thus exchanging the customary kisses with the peasant and taking from him a dark-brown egg, he noticed the chatoyant dress of Matriena Pavlovna and the lovely head with the red bow.
From The Awakening The Resurrection by Tolstoy, Leo, graf
She was leaning on her elbows, her chin propped in her palms, and the light in her grey chatoyant eyes was wholly innocent and mischievous.
From Hearts and Masks by MacGrath, Harold
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
