1. A brief beam or flash of light: saw gleams of daylight through the cracks.
2. A steady but subdued shining; a glow: the gleam of burnished gold.
3. A brief or dim indication; a trace: a gleam of intelligence.

1. To emit a gleam; flash or glow: "Their tile roofs gleamed in the moon's pallid radiance" (Laura Joh Rowland). See synonyms at flash.
2. To be reflected as a gleam: The sun gleamed on the water.
3. To be manifested or indicated briefly or faintly.

[Middle English glem, from Old English glǣm.]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.