shimmer
To shine with a soft light that seems to tremble.
shimmer in a sentence
- The sea shimmered like silver under the summer moon.
- Heat made the air shimmer above the sand, and the dunes seemed to wobble like jelly.
Try an 11+ style question
Verbal reasoning papers often ask about a word like this.
Which word is closest in meaning to shimmer?
- Adarken
- Bfade
- Cdull
- Dgleam
Show the answer
D: gleam. The other three mean the opposite of shimmer.
Which word is most nearly opposite in meaning to shimmer?
- Adarken
- Bsparkle
- Cglow
- Dgleam
Show the answer
A: darken. The other three mean nearly the same as shimmer.
Words that mean something similar
gleam, glow, sparkle
Words that mean the opposite
darken, dull, fade
More words about light & dark
- sombre: Dark, dull and serious in mood or colour.
- twilight: The soft, dim light just after the sun goes down.
- beacon: A light or fire used as a signal that can be seen from far away.
- dazzle: To amaze someone with bright light or brilliance.
- dingy: Dark, dirty and a little gloomy.
- dismal: Dull, gloomy and miserable.
- gleam: To shine softly with light.
- glimmer: To shine with a faint, unsteady light; or that faint light.
More words to explore
Sitting the 11+ in Kent, Medway or Buckinghamshire?
Plain-English guides to each test, from the councils’ own pages: Kent Test · Medway Test · Bucks Secondary Transfer Test