golden

golden — adjective

1. made from the precious yellow metal called gold, or coated with a thin layer of

1.adjectiveA2
Definition

made from the precious yellow metal called gold, or coated with a thin layer of it on the surface.

Example

The museum displayed a golden crown from the twelfth century.

attributive: golden + noun (crown)

Mauricio received a golden brooch for his twenty years of service.

Common collocations
  • golden crown
  • golden ring
  • golden chain
  • golden brooch
  • golden earrings
  • golden coin
  • golden leaf
Synonyms
  • gold

    shorter, more common as a noun modifier for literal material (a gold coin)

  • gilded

    means covered with a thin layer of gold, not solid gold

Grammar Patterns

golden + noun

Usage Note

Attributive position is most common for this sense — a golden ring, a golden necklace. In predicative position (This ring is golden), it may be interpreted as the colour sense instead.

Common Mistakes

She bought a golden necklace.' (unclear: could mean 'made of gold' or 'gold-coloured').
She bought a gold necklace.
Use 'gold' as a noun modifier when you want to be clear the item is made of gold, not just gold-coloured.

2. having the warm, bright yellow shade that the metal gold displays; often describ

2.adjectiveA2
Definition

having the warm, bright yellow shade that the metal gold displays; often describes hair, sunlight, or autumn leaves.

Example

The autumn leaves turned a beautiful golden colour before falling.

predicative: turn + golden

Reema brushed her long golden hair in front of the mirror.

Common collocations
  • golden hair
  • golden light
  • golden sunset
  • golden skin
  • golden colour
  • golden glow
Synonyms
  • blond

    specifically for hair colour, less precise about the shade

  • yellow

    more basic colour term; lacks the warm shine that 'golden' implies

Grammar Patterns

golden + noun

be + golden

Usage Note

Can be used both before a noun (golden hair) and after a linking verb (Her hair is golden). For describing hair colour, 'blonde' (of European descent) or 'blond' is more common; 'golden' emphasises a warm, shiny quality.

3. exceptionally good because it creates the right conditions for someone to succee

3.adjectiveB1
Definition

exceptionally good because it creates the right conditions for someone to succeed, advance, or obtain something of great value — for example, a golden opportunity that should not be missed, or a golden period in history when a field flourishes.

Example

Tuan saw the internship as a golden chance to start his career.

fixed collocation: golden chance

The golden age of cinema brought many unforgettable films to the world.

fixed phrase: golden age of [field]

Common collocations
  • golden opportunity
  • golden age
  • golden years
  • golden chance
  • golden ticket
  • golden boy
  • golden rule
Synonyms
  • favourable

    less emphatic; describes conditions that are helpful but not necessarily perfect

  • superb

    focuses on high quality rather than advantage or luck

  • promising

    suggests future potential; less immediate than 'golden'

  • prime

    similar to 'golden' in phrases like 'prime opportunity', but less common with 'age'

Antonyms

Grammar Patterns

golden + noun (opportunity, age, years, ticket)

Usage Note

Nearly always used attributively before a noun in fixed phrases (golden opportunity, golden age, golden ticket, golden years). Meaning is emphatic — it is stronger than 'good' and closer to 'perfect' or 'ideal'. The noun it modifies is typically an abstract concept (chance, age, rule), not a physical object.

Common Mistakes

This is a golden pen.' (if meaning 'a very good pen' — sounds odd).
This is a golden opportunity.
'Golden' in the sense of 'excellent/advantageous' is mainly used with abstract nouns, not physical objects.

4. having a warm, rich, and pleasantly full sound quality, especially describing a

4.adjectiveC1
Definition

having a warm, rich, and pleasantly full sound quality, especially describing a person's singing voice or the sound of a musical instrument.

Example

Hao was moved by the golden tones of the old violin's melody.

attributive: golden + tones

The radio host had a golden voice that listeners found very relaxing.

fixed phrase: golden voice

Common collocations
  • golden voice
  • golden tones
  • golden sound
Synonyms
  • mellow

    suggests smoothness without harshness; less emphasis on richness

  • resonant

    describes a deep, echoing quality; more technical than 'golden'

  • warm

    close in meaning, but 'warm' is less specific to sound — can describe colours too

Antonyms
  • harsh

    unpleasantly rough or sharp in sound

Grammar Patterns

golden + noun (voice, tone, sound)

be + golden

Usage Note

Distinguish from sense 3: this sense applies to sound quality only. A 'golden voice' means a beautiful, resonant voice, NOT a voice that brings advantage. Common in reviews of singers, radio hosts, and live performances.

Idioms

silence is golden

idiom

a saying meaning that it is often better to say nothing than to speak, especially when speaking could cause problems.

When the argument grew heated, Esme remembered that silence is golden and stayed quiet.

Nala's father always told her silence is golden when she was about to say something unkind.

kill the goose that lays the golden egg / eggs

idiom

to destroy something that provides you with a steady source of income, success, or advantage by being greedy or careless.

The company raised prices so high that customers left — they killed the goose that laid the golden egg.

Eric worried that cutting the research budget would kill the goose that lays the golden eggs.

the golden rule

idiom

the principle that you should treat other people the way you would like them to treat you.

Greta's grandmother taught her the golden rule: treat others how you wish to be treated.

Many religions share a version of the golden rule in their teachings.

be golden

idiom

To be in a very good or successful position with no problems.

If Maya finishes this project on time, she'll be golden.

Once we get the contract signed, we are golden.

the happy/golden mean

idiom

A way of acting that avoids extremes and is balanced.

Sara tries to find the golden mean between work and rest.

In parenting, the happy mean is neither too strict nor too lenient.

kill the goose that lays the golden egg/eggs

idiom

To ruin a reliable source of income or success by being greedy or careless.

By overcharging customers, the company killed the goose that laid the golden eggs.

If you fire your best employee, you'll kill the goose that lays the golden egg.

Word family

  • gold
    nounA1
  • gold-plated
    adjectiveC1
  • gild
    verbC1
  • gilded
    adjectiveC1
  • gilt
    adjectiveC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/3

Golden (sense 3) describes something that is not just good but perfectly timed or uniquely valuable — a golden opportunity is one you should not pass up. Favourable focuses on conditions that work in your favour rather than against you: a favourable wind or a favourable exchange rate does not guarantee perfect results but helps. Promising looks ahead to future success (a promising start to the project). Superb is about extremely high quality at the moment (a superb performance). Prime overlaps with golden in phrases like 'prime opportunity', but prime often refers to the best stage of something (prime condition, prime location) rather than luck or advantage. A golden age is a period of great artistic or cultural achievement; a prime location refers to physical position.

favourable ↗promising ↗superb ↗prime ↗

Common collocations

Phrases

  • golden rule
  • golden mean

Etymology

Proto-GermanicOld EnglishMiddle EnglishEnglish

Golden comes from Old English gylden, meaning 'made of gold'. This word developed from Proto-Germanic *gulþīnaz, which itself came from *gulþą ('gold'). The colour sense appeared in early Middle English, and by the 1300s the word was already being used figuratively to describe things as precious, excellent, or favourable — a path it shared with the noun gold, which had long symbolised value and perfection across many cultures.