tinsel

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   thin strips or threads of shiny material used as decoration

   Silver tinsel hung from the shop window among the masks and costumes.

2. 2
   noun

   showy or glittering attractiveness that has little real value or substance

   The campaign relied on tinsel and spectacle instead of a convincing policy.

3. 3
   verb

   to decorate or make something sparkle as if with tinsel

   Frost tinseled the branches in the early morning light.

From Middle English tinsel, a costly cloth woven with gold or silver thread, probably through Anglo-Norman from forms related to Old French estincelle ("spark") or estinceler ("to sparkle"). The word shifted from glittering fabric to metallic decoration and then to superficial showiness.

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