gossamer

1 of 2

noun

gos·​sa·​mer ˈgä-sə-mər 

 also  ˈgäz-mər,

ˈgä-zə-

1

: a film of cobwebs floating in air in calm clear weather

2

: something light, delicate, or insubstantial

the gossamer of youth's dreams

—Andrea Parke

gossamery

ˈgä-sə-mə-rē 

 also  ˈgäz-mə-

ˈgä-zə-

adjective

gossamer

2 of 2

adjective

: extremely light, delicate, or tenuous

a gossamer white veil

Did you know?

Centuries before its breezy emergence as an adjective meaning "extremely light or delicate," gossamer was used as a noun. It came to our language by way of Middle English, where gossomer (literally "goose summer") referred to a period of mild weather in late autumn or early winter. Gossomer was also used in Middle English as a word for filmy cobwebs floating through the air in calm, clear weather, possibly because somebody thought the webs looked like the down of a goose or because that mild period was when they tended to notice the spider silk wafting. This sense eventually inspired the adjective gossamer, which describes things that are as light or delicate as cobwebs. The noun form of gossamer is still floating around: it has held onto its Middle English predecessor’s meaning of "a film of cobwebs" and can also refer to something that is light, delicate, or insubstantial, as in "a thread of gossamer."

Synonyms

Adjective

• cobwebby
• filmy
• flimsy
• frothy
• gauzy
• gossamery
• insubstantial
• sleazy
• unsubstantial

Examples of gossamer in a Sentence

Noun

a butterfly's wings of gossamer

Adjective

fairies are usually depicted as wearing gossamer or tattered clothing

the gossamer veil seemed to float about the bride as she walked down the aisle

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Alongside Marciano and the increasingly gossamer Alchemist tracks of the last decade, Ka made the most of a stark production. —Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 15 Oct. 2024

Some viewers will be frustrated by the gossamer plotting in a film that seeks to conjure an air of interior calm rather than any kind of thrill. —Guy Lodge, Variety, 17 Oct. 2024

Adjective

No matter how far-fetched the premise or gossamer-thin the story, the musical invites (compels) us to go along with its essential surrealism, to travel to that dream space where everyday life suddenly moves and sounds deliriously out of this world. —Manohla Dargis, New York Times, 7 May 2020

For her label Anissa Aida, designer Anissa Meddeb, who lives in the capital, makes gossamer silk blouses evoking the striped motif of handwoven fouta towels and voluminous coats inspired by the burnoose cloaks worn by Berbers. —Sarah Khan, Condé Nast Traveler, 5 Feb. 2020

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English gossomer, from gos goose + somer summer

Adjective

from attributive use of gossamer entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

circa 1807, in the meaning defined above

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Kids Definition

gossamer

noun

gos·​sa·​mer

ˈgäs-ə-mər,

 also  ˈgäz(-ə)-mər

1

: a film of cobwebs floating in air

2

: something light or very delicate

gossamer adjective

gossamery

-mə-rē

adjective