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prettygoodword.livejournal.comchatoyant (shuh-TOY-uhnt) - adj., having changeable color or luster.
Of certain gemstones or silk, for example. To change like a cat's eye, literally: borrowed in the 1790s from French, from a variant form present participle of chatoyer, to change luster like a cat's eye, from chat, cat + a verbal suffix. In stones, this is usually caused by fibrous inclusions, as in a tiger's eye quartz or cat's eye chrysoberyl. Apparently in silk something similar happens, but I'm less clear on this.
But Mamzelle Hepzibah, now, when she came into the drawing room with her blonde hair in ringlets and that gold chatoyant gown, ah, all eyes were upon her.
---L.
Of certain gemstones or silk, for example. To change like a cat's eye, literally: borrowed in the 1790s from French, from a variant form present participle of chatoyer, to change luster like a cat's eye, from chat, cat + a verbal suffix. In stones, this is usually caused by fibrous inclusions, as in a tiger's eye quartz or cat's eye chrysoberyl. Apparently in silk something similar happens, but I'm less clear on this.
But Mamzelle Hepzibah, now, when she came into the drawing room with her blonde hair in ringlets and that gold chatoyant gown, ah, all eyes were upon her.
---L.
