confetti

Everyday

1. Tiny pieces of coloured paper thrown into the air at weddings, parties and parades. tree →
2. Anything that falls or lies about in many tiny bright bits, like confetti: «a confetti of petals». tree →
3. Small sugar sweets or sprinkles used to decorate cakes (sometimes called «confetti sprinkles»). tree →

In the lessons

Used in stories about weddings, birthdays, sports wins and New Year parties; it tells the reader the scene is happy and noisy. In school, art lessons use paper confetti for collage; science teachers warn that plastic or glitter confetti harms nature, so many places now use paper or dried-petal confetti. Phrases: «throw confetti», «a confetti cannon», «covered in confetti», «confetti everywhere».

Examples

• The guests threw confetti over the bride and groom. tree →
• There was confetti in my hair for days after the party. tree →
• The winning team was showered with confetti on the stage. tree →
• We made confetti with a hole punch and old magazines. tree →
• The church asks people to use only paper confetti. tree →
• Mum sighed when she saw the confetti all over the carpet. tree →
• Autumn leaves fell like confetti in the wind. tree →
• The cupcakes were topped with rainbow confetti sprinkles. tree →

Note

Uncountable: say «some confetti», «a handful of confetti», never «a confetti» or «confettis». It takes a singular verb: «The confetti was everywhere». It comes from Italian, where the word first meant small sweets thrown at carnivals. Glitter is not the same as confetti: glitter is tiny shiny plastic bits.