gilded

adjective

gild·​ed ˈgil-dəd 

1

: covered or tinged with gold or a golden color

gilded icons

The reception room, just off the entryway, features colorful wall and ceiling decorations and a gilded overmantel mirror and matching cornices.

—Stephen May

2

: having a background of wealth and luxury : prosperous, luxurious

Emily Post was raised among New York's gilded elite.

—Susan Berfield

… despite the upper-crust background and the gilded résumé, Bonham Carter is a pretty modern chick off stage.

—Elizabeth Gleick

Examples of gilded in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Now part of the Musei Reali, the palace’s royal apartments—replete with crystal chandeliers, ceiling frescoes, gilded moldings, and antiques—have been opened up to the public. —Laura Itzkowitz, Travel + Leisure, 22 Feb. 2025

These hotels are, at their worst, sites of literal death, and at best, gilded cages for the unimaginative. —Alex Abad-Santos, Vox, 17 Feb. 2025

Pieces adorned with gilded motifs and dreamlike elements sparked meaningful conversations about the enduring dialogue between art and couture. —Spin Contributor, SPIN, 17 Feb. 2025

Few visitors wandering through the mummy galleries at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo have the opportunity—or perhaps the inclination—to smell the aromas wafting off the gilded sarcophagi and elaborately wrapped bodies of ancient Egyptian elites on display in glass cases. —Sarah Everts, Smithsonian Magazine, 13 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

from past participle of gild entry 1

First Known Use

1540, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for gilded

• builded