luccicare

to glitter, to sparkle

verb loot-chee-KAH-reh Rare

Origin: From lucciola (firefly) + frequentative suffix -icare; related to luce (light), from Latin lux.

Usage Note

Luccicare is an intransitive verb and takes avere as its auxiliary: ha luccicato (it sparkled). It describes a repeated, flickering shimmer — sunlight on water, stars, sequins — rather than a steady glow. The related noun is luccichìo (sparkle, glitter). Note the double -cc- which is preserved across conjugation: luccica (it sparkles), not 'lucica'.

Examples

"Le stelle luccicano nel cielo limpido."

Natural Translation

The stars sparkle in the clear sky.

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