Clinquant vs Tinsel - What's the difference?
clinquant | tinsel |
A shining material used for ornamental purposes; especially, a very thin, gauzelike cloth with much gold or silver woven into it; also, very thin metal overlaid with a thin coating of gold or silver, brass foil, or the like.
* :
* {{quote-book, year=1963, author=(Margery Allingham)
, title=(The China Governess)
, chapter=Foreword Very thin strips of a glittering, metallic material used as a decoration, and traditionally, draped at Christmas time over streamers, paper chains and the branches of Christmas trees.
Anything shining and gaudy; something superficially shining and showy, or having a false luster, and more gay than valuable.
* :
Glittering, later especially superficially so; gaudy, showy.
* 1590 , (Edmund Spenser), The Faerie Queene , III.1:
To adorn with tinsel; to deck out with cheap but showy ornaments; to make gaudy.
* :
(figuratively) To give a false sparkle to (something).
As adjectives the difference between clinquant and tinsel
is that clinquant is glittery; dressed in, or overlaid with, tinsel finery while tinsel is glittering, later especially superficially so; gaudy, showy.As nouns the difference between clinquant and tinsel
is that clinquant is dutch metal while tinsel is a shining material used for ornamental purposes; especially, a very thin, gauzelike cloth with much gold or silver woven into it; also, very thin metal overlaid with a thin coating of gold or silver, brass foil, or the like.As a verb tinsel is
to adorn with tinsel; to deck out with cheap but showy ornaments; to make gaudy.clinquant
English
tinsel
English
Noun
(-)- Who can discern the tinsel from the gold?
citation, passage=He stood transfixed before the unaccustomed view of London at night time, a vast panorama which reminded him […] of some wood engravings far off and magical, in a printshop in his childhood. They dated from the previous century and were coarsely printed on tinted paper, with tinsel outlining the design.}}
- O happy peasant! O unhappy bard! His the mere tinsel , hers the rich reward.
Adjective
(en adjective)- Her garments all were wrought of beaten gold, / And all her steed with tinsell trappings shone [...].
Verb
- She, tinseled o'er in robes of varying hues.