Making a light ringing or tinkling sound; emitting small metallic or musical tones.
From the prefix 'a-' combined with 'tinkle' (from Middle Dutch 'tincelen,' to sparkle or ring). This archaic adjective describes something in the state of producing tinkling sounds.
Notice how 'atinkle' and 'atingle' follow the same pattern—English had this whole family of 'a-' words that put you *in* a state or condition, which is why medieval and Renaissance writers used them for poetic, vivid descriptions.
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