scintillate

verb

scin·​til·​late ˈsin-tə-ˌlāt 

scintillated; scintillating

intransitive verb

1

: to emit sparks : spark

2

: to emit quick flashes as if throwing off sparks : sparkle

Imagine it's a cool summer night, the stars scintillate brilliantly in the sky overhead and the campfire blazes away.

—Thomas E. Young

3

: to dazzle or impress with liveliness or wit

The Jay Tarses sitcom, which scintillates with whacked-out wit, was dropped by NBC in 1988 because it was deemed too quirky.

—Lawrence Eisenberg

Mrs. Burnett's discussion of the Orestes leads the way to a new interpretation of Euripides' Apolline solution, a solution which has titillated, puzzled and infuriated generations of scholars. The arguments scintillate, but sometimes are pushed too far.

—Geoffrey Arnott

transitive verb

: to throw off as a spark or as sparkling flashes

scintillate witticisms

scintillator

ˈsin-tə-ˌlā-tər 

noun

Did you know?

The Sparkling History of Scintillate

The initial spark of the verb scintillate was the Latin noun scintilla, meaning, well, “spark.” The ember of scintilla in turn developed into the verb scintillāre, “to sparkle.” Scintillate retains this meaning in expressing the action of gleaming, glittery things, as when jewelry or the surface of a lake in full sun scintillates. But the word can and often does mean “to sparkle” in a figurative sense—that is, to dazzle or impress with a brilliant performance—making the word apt for both celestial and cinematic scintillating stars.

Synonyms

• spark
• sparkle

Examples of scintillate in a Sentence

we watched contentedly as our campfire scintillated in the darkness

the diamond ring scintillated in the sunlight

Recent Examples on the Web

The musician posted a short but scintillating clip on Twitter that features a snippet of the song’s slinky groove. —Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 10 May 2023

The garland dance was just one of the nice sequences highlighting ensembles and throngs: courtiers and nymphs; christening, birthday and nuptial invitees; the attendants of the Lilac Fairy (an able, if not scintillating Adelaide Clauss); and more. —Celia Wren, Washington Post, 5 May 2023

Hill has positioned himself as a candidate for the Smythe Trophy (awarded to the most valuable player of the Stanley Cup Finals) following another scintillating performance in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Finals. —oregonlive, 11 June 2023

Indeed, in his third career start Sunday night, Miller offered more of the scintillating same — even if the Dodgers couldn’t capitalize upon it in a frustrating 4-1 loss at Chavez Ravine. —Jack Harris, Los Angeles Times, 4 June 2023

Word History

Etymology

Latin scintillatus, past participle of scintillare to sparkle, from scintilla spark

First Known Use

circa 1623, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

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Kids Definition

scintillate

verb

scin·​til·​late ˈsint-ᵊl-ˌāt 

scintillated; scintillating

1

: to give off sparks

2

: to flash or gleam as if throwing off sparks

eyes scintillating with anger

scintillant

-ᵊl-ənt

adjective

scintillation

ˌsint-ᵊl-ˈā-shən

noun

Medical Definition

scintillate

intransitive verb

scin·​til·​late ˈsint-ᵊl-ˌāt 

scintillated; scintillating

: to produce scintillation