kaleidoscope

plural kaleidoscopes · alternative caleidoscope

1. An instrument consisting of a tube containing mirrors and loose, colourful beads or other objects; when the tube is looked into and rotated, a succession of symmetrical designs can be seen.First known use 1817

   He closed his eyes and his thoughts pursued his imagination through a series of carefully constructed scenes as if he was watching the tumbling chips of coloured glass in a kaleidoscope.

   1953, Ian Fleming, “Pink Lights and Champagne”, in Casino Royale, London: Pan Books, published 1955, page 56

   3 more examples

   The Kaleidoscope (from καλος beautiful, ειδος a form, and σκοπεω to see) is an instrument for creating and exhibiting an infinite variety of beautiful forms, and is constructed in such a manner as either to please the eye, by an ever-varying succession of splendid tints and symmetrical forms, or to enable the observer to render permanent such as may appear most appropriate for any of the numerous branches of the ornamental arts.

   1817 July 10, David Brewster, “Specification of the Patent Granted to David Brewster, of Edinburgh, Doctor of Laws; for a New Optical Instrument, Called The Kaleidoscope, for Exhibiting and Creating Beautiful Forms and Patterns, of Great Use in All the Ornamental Arts [patent no. 4136]”, in The Repertory of Arts, Manufactures, and Agriculture. […], volume XXXI (Second Series), number CLXXXVI, London: […] [Nichols, Son, and Bentley] for J. Wyatt, […], published November 1817, →OCLC, page 321

   The mind of Petrarch was like a kaleidoscope. At every turn it presents us with new forms, always fantastic, occasionally beautiful; and we can scarcely believe that all these varieties have been produced by the same worthless fragments of glass.

   1824 April, [Thomas Babington] Macaulay, “[Contributions to Knight’s Quarterly Magazine.] Criticisms on the Principal Italian Writers. No. II. Petrarch.”, in T[homas] F[lower] E[llis], editor, The Miscellaneous Writings and Speeches of Lord Macaulay, new edition, London: Longman, Green, Reader, & Dyer, published 1871, →OCLC, page 49

   Detractors saw the kaleidoscope as an expression of a mass consumer culture that could be all too easily distracted by the shiniest new baubles and sensations. […] The revolution that Steve Jobs triggered in 2007 with the launch of the iPhone means that most of us now have a modern day kaleidoscope in our pockets.

   2020, Noreena Hertz, “Our Screens, Our Selves”, in The Lonely Century: A Call to Reconnect, London: Hodder & Stoughton, →ISBN

2. figurativelyA constantly changing series of colours or other things.

   [T]his rainbow look'd like hope— / Quite a celestial kaleidoscope.

   1819 July 15, [Lord Byron], Don Juan, London: […] Thomas Davison, […], →OCLC, canto II, stanza XCIII, page 165

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   Lady Etheringhame being now a constitutionalist, dined rather early: and Emily, her head like a kaleidescope, full of colours, with not a little disdain, put on the blue silk she had thought bleu céleste, at least in the country.

   1831, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter V, in Romance and Reality. […], volume I, London: Henry Colburn and Richard Bentley, […], →OCLC, pages 34-35

   The rail journey from The Hook [i.e., the Hook of Holland] to Basle is a scenic kaleidoscope, ranging from the flat terrain of the Netherlands to the high ranges of the Black Forest, from the straight Dutch waterways to the sinuous Rhine gorge, from the ocean-going shipping of canals to the busy inland traffic of the Rhine and from peaceful farmland to thriving centres of commerce.

   1961 April, G. Freeman Allen, “The ‘Rheingold’ Goes via Cologne”, in Trains Illustrated, London: Ian Allan Publishing, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 231

   Another most notable change concerns rolling stock liveries. Back then, corporate Rail Blue was omnipresent, whereas now there is a kaleidoscope of colours and styles.

   2020 June 17, David Clough, “Then and Now: Trains through Crewe”, in Rail, number 907, Peterborough, Cambridgeshire: Bauer Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 60

   The chip smells like nothing, but tastes like a smörgåsbord that's both confusing and arousing, like Steve Buscemi. Flecks of spring green – the kind generated from radioactive waste – coat the unwieldy triangles. The seasoning is a kaleidoscope of Day-Glo dust particles that perishes under saliva and tongue.

   2022 April 20, Mariella Rudi, “Tostitos Hint of Lime has zero lime – but it’s still the perfect chip”, in Katharine Viner, editor, The Guardian, London: Guardian News & Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 29 Nov 2022

   The kaleidoscope of handmade signs and causes, from immigration and the defense of Ukraine to LGBTQ rights and press freedom, spoke to the range and scope of Mr. Trump’s executive actions since Jan. 20.

   2025 April 7, Simon Montlake, Caitlin Babcock, Ali Martin, Cameron Pugh, Jingnan Peng, “Is the anti-Trump ‘resistance’ starting to find its voice again?”, in The Christian Science Monitor

3. collectiveA swarm of butterflies.

   My heart fluttered like a kaleidoscope of butterflies, accompanied by an ocean of joyful tears.

   2026, Lyndon Fitzgerald Harris, Forgiveness at Ground Zero: A Journey of Service, Loss, and Redemption After 9/11, Bloomsbury Publishing, page 200

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   Jackasses shrieked in the forest, cockatoos busied themselves with their nests and a kaleidoscope of butterflies flitted among the fragrant shrubs and trees.

   2006, Natascha Scott-Stokes, Wild and Fearless: The Life of Margaret Fountaine, Peter Owen, page 206

   Nick could close his eyes hard and envision kaleidoscopes of butterflies and herds of mammals moving along corridors of forest or grasslands.

   2021, Rob Dunn, A Natural History of the Future: What the Laws of Biology Tell Us about the Destiny of the Human Species, Basic Books

   A kaleidoscope of mariposas monarca ( monarch butterflies ), evoking breath and life-giving air, fly from the cosmic woman's parted lips, bringing to mind the poetic lines painted on to Colectivo Moriviví's first mural

   2022, Jana Evans Braziel, Street Art and Activism in the Greater Caribbean: Impossible States, Virtual Publics, Taylor & Francis

present singular third person kaleidoscopes · participle present kaleidoscoping · participle past kaleidoscoped · past kaleidoscoped

1. intransitiveTo move in shifting (and often attractive or colourful) patterns.