/ˈɡlɪsn/
glis·ten
BrE /ˈɡlɪsn/
NAmE /ˈɡlɪsn/
[I]
(of sth wet)
to shine
Her eyes were glistening with tears.
Sweat glistened on his forehead.
+ adj.
The road glistened wet after the rain.
shinegleam ◇ glow ◇ sparkle ◇ glisten ◇ shimmer ◇ glitter ◇ twinkle ◇ glint
These words all mean to produce or reflect light.
shine to produce or reflect light, especially brightly：
The sun was shining and the sky was blue.
gleam to shine with a clear bright or pale light, especially a reflected light：
Moonlight gleamed on the water.
glow (often of sth hot or warm) to produce a dull steady light：
The end of his cigarette glowed red.
sparkle to shine brightly with small flashes of light：
The diamonds sparkled in the light.
glisten (of sth wet) to shine：
The road glistened wet after the rain.
shimmer to shine with a soft light that seems to shake slightly：
Everything seemed to shimmer in the heat.
glitter to shine brightly with small flashes of reflected light：
The ceiling of the cathedral glittered with gold.
sparkle or 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.：
the superficial glitter of show business
Sparkle is also often used to talk about light reflected off a surface, but things that produce light can also sparkle.：
Stars sparkled in the sky.
twinkle to shine with a light that changes rapidly from bright to faint to bright again：
Stars twinkled in the sky.
glint to give small bright flashes of reflected light：
The blade of the knife glinted in the darkness.
Patterns
to shine/gleam/sparkle/glisten/shimmer/glitter/glint on sth
to shine/gleam/glow/sparkle/glisten/shimmer/glitter/twinkle/glint with sth
to shine/gleam/sparkle/glisten/shimmer/glitter/glint in the sunlight
to shine/gleam/glisten/shimmer/glitter/glint in the moonlight
the stars shine/sparkle/glitter/twinkle
sb’s eyes shine/gleam/glow/sparkle/glisten/glitter/twinkle/glint
to shine/gleam/glow/glitter brightly
to shine/gleam/glow/shimmer softly
ˌall that ˌglitters/ˌglistens is not ˈgold
(saying)
not everything that seems good, attractive, etc. is actually good, etc.