different between iridescence vs sheen

English

Noun

iridescence (countable and uncountable, plural iridescences)

1. The condition or state of being iridescent; exhibition of colors like those of the rainbow; a prismatic play of color.
2. Any shimmer of glittering and changeable colors.

Related terms

• iridescent
• iridescently
• iridesce

See also

• luminescence
• fluorescence

Translations

References

• iridescence in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
• iridescence in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.

English

Pronunciation

• enPR: sh?n, IPA^(key): /?i?n/
• Rhymes: -i?n

Etymology 1

From Middle English shene, schene, from Old English s??ene (“beautiful, fair, bright, brilliant, light”), from Proto-West Germanic *skaun?, from Proto-Germanic *skauniz (“beautiful”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kewh?-.

Cognate with Scots schene, scheine (“beautiful, fair, attractive”), Saterland Frisian skeen (“clean, pure”), West Frisian skjin (“nice, clean”), Dutch schoon (“clean, beautiful, fair”), German schön (“beautiful”), Danish skøn (“beautiful”), Norwegian Bokmål skjønn (“beautiful”), Norwegian Nynorsk skjønn (“beautiful”), Swedish skön (“beautiful, fine”). Compare also the loanword Finnish kaunis (“beautiful”). See also English show.

Adjective

sheen (comparative sheener, superlative sheenest)

1. (rare, poetic) Beautiful, good-looking, attractive; radiant; shiny.

Derived terms

• sheenly

Noun

sheen (countable and uncountable, plural sheens)

1. Splendor; radiance; shininess.
   • 1946, Mervyn Peake, Titus Groan

2. A thin layer of a substance (such as oil) spread on a solid or liquid surface.
   • 2017, Jeffrey Miller, Ann Powers, Introduction to Environmental Law: Cases and Materials on Water Pollution Control, West Academic (?ISBN)

Derived terms

• sheenful
• sheenless
• sheeny

Translations

Verb

sheen (third-person singular simple present sheens, present participle sheening, simple past and past participle sheened)

1. (rare, intransitive, poetic) To shine; to glisten.

Translations

Etymology 2

Noun

sheen (plural sheens)

1. The letter ? in the Arabic script.

Further reading

• sheen on Wikipedia.Wikipedia