sequin

To decorate with sequins.

Noun

  1. Any of various small gold coins minted in Italy and Turkey.
    • ‘Let him receive as many robes of honour and thousands of sequins of gold as he hath spoken words.’ - 1816, William Beckford, Vathek, Oxford, published 2013, page 10:
    • English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Georges, and Louises, doubloons and double guineas and moidores and sequins, the pictures of all the kings of Europe for the last hundred years, strange Oriental pices stamped with...

    Synonyms: zecchin

  2. A sparkling spangle used for the decoration of ornate clothing.
    • His ideas of music-hall costumes had never gone beyond short skirts, a swirl of lace, and glittering sequins; but Miss Antonia had expressed herself on that subject in no uncertain terms. - 1915, W. Somerset Maugham,...
    • Neer imagined Jane in tulle and leather and sequins and knew the answer. - 2022, Janelle Monáe, Danny Lore, “Nevermind”, in The Memory Librarian, Harper Voyager, →ISBN, page 122:

    Synonyms: paillette

Origin

Borrowed from French sequin, from Italian zecchino, from zecca (“mint”), from Arabic سِكَّة (sikka, “die for coining, coin”). Doublet of zecchin.

Forms

sequins

Derived

sequined

Verb

  1. To decorate with sequins.

Forms

sequins sequining sequined