opalescence
opalescence — noun
1. the way some surfaces seem to glow softly and show different colours as the ligh
the way some surfaces seem to glow softly and show different colours as the light or your viewing angle moves
Eshe held the seashell up to the window to admire its pale opalescence.
the X of [object]: describing a surface's soft colour-shifting glow
The opalescence of the soap bubble shifted from pink to green as it floated past Maeve.
opalescence shifting between named colours
Under the museum lights, the milky stone gave off a gentle opalescence that drew a small crowd.
Renata painted the moth's wings with tiny dots to capture their faint opalescence.
A soft opalescence spread across the wet sand as the sun dipped toward the sea.
- iridescence
very close; stresses rainbow-like colour change, while opalescence adds a soft, milky quality
- sheen
plainer and more common; a soft shine without the shifting colours
- luster
the way a surface reflects light, but without the play of changing colour
- dullness
a flat surface with no shine or colour play
用法筆記
Almost always uncountable and used of a surface's appearance — pearls, opals, bubbles, fish scales, certain glass. Frequently appears as 'the opalescence of [object]'.