Fun with synonyms - "shine/sparkle/glitter/glimmer/glisten/gleam/twinkle/flash"


Been thinking about these for a while. I see that we already have [Difference
between 光る, 輝く, and 光り輝く?](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/q/23728/78), but
I'm including a lot more. What are the differences in meaning (ignoring
conjugations) of the following words:

  * 光る・ピカピカ
  * 輝く・輝かす
  * 光り輝く
  * [閃]{ひらめ}く
  * [煌]{きらめ}く・キラキラ・ギラつく
  * 瞬く
  * てかる・テカテカ
  * ちらつく・ちらちら
  * 照る・照らす

Which ones are interchangeable? Which ones imply a definite "brightness", and
which ones don't ( _I'd say even in English, "glimmer" and "flash" do not
necessarily imply brightness—even a dim light could glimmer (as its intensity
grows and fades) or flash (off and on)_ )?




  * 光る probably is the most neutral and can replace others in most cases. 
    * ピカピカ光る implies the light is on and off alternately.
  * 輝く sounds brighter light, but not necessarily physically. It indicates that the speaker positively values the light. 
    * キラキラ輝く implies the changes in the intensity of the light, like ピカピカ光る. キラキラ光る is also possible.
  * 光り輝く is used more in a figurative sense: 彼の業績は歴史上に光り輝いている = His achievements stand gloriously in history. Like this usage, 輝く sometimes has the connotation of glory.
  * 閃く, again used mostly figuratively: アイディアがひらめく = An idea flashed in my mind. Dictionaries list examples like 雷光がひらめく = Lightning flashes, but normally we say 雷が鳴る
  * 星が煌めく/星が瞬く: To me, the former invokes the night starry sky, lots of stars while the latter talks about (at most) a few stars twinkling. 
    * ギラつく is used like: ギラついた人 = a person with eyes gleaming with _ambitions_ ; or ギラギラした = gleaming with ambitions (not sure if _gleaming_ is correct here).
  * テカる does not necessarily imply light - it is used for some wet surface, especially with something oily. Possibly close to _glisten_. E.g. テカついた肌 = The oily skin
  * 照る is mostly used for the sun. E.g. 日が照る = the sun is burning hot. 照らす is close to _shed light on_. E.g. 月が道を照らす = The moon lights up the road.

