# shiny

Pronunciation: US say "SHY-nee" /ˈʃaɪ.ni/; UK

## Adjective

1. Reflecting light; having a bright, glossy surface.
   - Simple: Bright and smooth, so that light bounces off it.
   - _After a good polish, the old silver spoons looked shinier than new ones._
   - _Her shiny silk dress caught every eye at the party._
3. Excellent; remarkable. *(colloquial)*
   - Simple: Very good, or great.
   - _We're shiny, okay? he said, though nothing about the situation was._
   - _The crew called any job that went to plan a shiny one._

## Noun

2. Anything that glitters; a trinket. *(colloquial)*
   - Simple: Any small bright thing that catches your eye.
   - _He was easily distracted by the next shiny on the shelf._
   - _The toddler's pockets were full of shinies: bottle caps, scraps of foil, a lost earring._
4. In video games, a desirable collectible, especially a rare variant of a creature or item.
   - Simple: In video games, a rare item or creature that players want to collect.
   - _The odds of finding a shiny are low enough that players compare their luck._
   - _A full set of shinies is a point of pride in the community._

## Adjective

5. Bright; luminous; clear and unclouded. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: In old use, bright and clear, like a day full of sunshine.

## Noun

6. A desk worker. *(dated)*
   - Simple: An old, unkind slang word for someone who works at a desk.
   - _The troops had no time for a shiny who had never seen the front._
   - _Promotion, the sergeant said, went to the shinies who typed the reports._

## Other meanings

- (adjective) Emitting light.

## Origin

**Meanings 1, 3, 5** — Formed from "shine" combined with the adjective-forming suffix "-y".
**Meanings 2, 4** — Formed from "shine" combined with the noun-forming suffix "-y".
**Meaning 6** — A contraction of "shiny arse", which originated during World War II.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/shiny (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).