Home UK English glimpse

Meaning of glimpse in English:

glimpse

Pronunciation /ɡlɪm(p)s/

See synonyms for glimpse

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noun

  • 1A momentary or partial view.

    ‘she caught a glimpse of the ocean’
    • ‘Trying to look past the dull conversation, I caught a glimpse of red from the corner of my eye.’
    • ‘The only thing is during all of this, I caught a glimpse of his face and he looked so familiar.’
    • ‘She peeked round the corner and caught a glimpse of a police car going slowly down the street.’
    • ‘He didn't look at her but she caught a glimpse of his misty grey eyes, they seemed far away.’
    • ‘She looked around the beautifully adorned room and caught a glimpse of herself in a round oval mirror.’
    • ‘He caught a glimpse of my wallet pic of Colin, only a glimpse though.’
    • ‘He glanced around the trunk and caught a glimpse of a shape moving through the trees.’
    • ‘I toss opportunities like coins, and call tails when I've already caught a glimpse of the queen's crown.’
    • ‘I still recall one Sunday morning when I caught a glimpse of them outside.’
    • ‘As he spun around in his child like dance, he caught a glimpse of something off the side of the boat.’
    • ‘When the reeds parted, he caught a glimpse of her, and yes, there she was, the river goddess.’
    • ‘A large gasp emerged from my throat as I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror.’
    • ‘In the mirror, I caught my first glimpse of his face without the ironwork interrupting his features.’
    • ‘As he spun her around, I could get brief glimpses of her face.’
    • ‘You get only fleeting glimpses of the action and you are surrounded by people becoming progressively more drunk.’
    • ‘You're just showing tantalizing glimpses of your uberflat tummy!’
    • ‘And I was left with the feeling of having been granted a glimpse of heaven.’
    • ‘For once, there were no fans hanging around waiting to have a glimpse of their favourite star.’
    • ‘Rolling her eyes, her father caught glimpse in the mirror.’
    • ‘I kept shooting glimpses over my shoulder at all the people who passed me by.’
    brief look, quick look
    View synonyms
    1. 1.1A brief insight or indication.
      ‘during the interview he offered a behind-the-scenes glimpse of television’
      • ‘Shot mostly among red brick suburbs, the film also offers brief glimpses of the modern concrete city centre.’
      • ‘There will be brief glimpses into what the future holds as well.’
      • ‘Sometimes youth football offers a glimpse of the present, not the future.’
      • ‘From the river cruise the docklands look like docklands everywhere; tourists finally at rest, not quite bored, get brief glimpses into other lives, other spaces.’
      • ‘The insight came only in glimpses, like a light on a dimmer switch that suddenly brightens to the point of utter clarity then fades again to a soft glow.’
      • ‘The stories are heartbreaking, but the privilege of the briefest of glimpses of the lost lives is also revealing and inspiring.’
      • ‘The three programs could offer a glimpse into the future of children's mental health care, they say.’
      • ‘It is a sensational, jaw-dropping piece of theatre which gives a brief glimpse of what it's like to be in a war.’
      • ‘The brief spaces in the entrancing melody offer glimpses of a lurking pressure.’
      • ‘His lyrics read like tabloid confessionals, offering glimpses into a celebrity's life.’
      • ‘A tour of the commercial galleries offers glimpses of the art market at work.’
      • ‘Today their work has given an intriguing glimpse into the life of a lost community from the Middle Ages.’
      • ‘We're given a tantalising glimpse of Molnar's view on causality.’
      • ‘For outsiders, it's a rare glimpse behind the paper curtain.’
      • ‘The architects' remarks gave listeners a special behind-the-scenes glimpse of some of their creations.’
      • ‘Students of history will find behind-the-scenes glimpses into fascinating and insightful personalities.’
      • ‘The possibility tossed him in its hands, showing him glimpses of his potential.’
      • ‘In the process they give us a glimpse of the powerful educational potential of the medium.’
      • ‘And a glimpse into the past and present of the sport of polo.’
      • ‘The years roll back, as we catch brief glimpses of former lives.’

verb

[with object]

  • 1See or perceive briefly or partially.

    ‘he glimpsed a figure standing in the shade’
    • ‘Everyone here has heard the stories - or maybe, been on a convoy through the green zone, briefly glimpsed the way that other half lives.’
    • ‘We briefly glimpse him alive and well before he is blown from his horse by a shell that destroys a significant part of his face.’
    • ‘He briefly glimpses a woman running down the wooded path, but she is far away and disappears around a corner before he can look more closely.’
    • ‘I've never been entirely comfortable here, and on a couple of occasions I've glimpsed figures on or near the stairs.’
    • ‘The young girl's mind was on the mysterious figure she had glimpsed the night before.’
    • ‘So here, imagination allows us to glimpse truths of a kind that seem to elude reason operating alone.’
    • ‘Complex analysis of the international tale of the hero or heroine who glimpses a forbidden sight and suffers for it.’
    • ‘He happened to glimpse the clock and realized he had lost track of the time.’
    • ‘From the opposite ends of the political spectrum, we had each glimpsed a piece of the same truth.’
    • ‘To tell the truth, I couldn't glimpse a trace of any such crisis in the mesmerizing flow of this work.’
    • ‘The headmaster glimpsed in memory the little suburban classroom.’
    • ‘It shows a way of life rarely glimpsed on children's TV - a Scottish island community, authentic down to the accents.’
    • ‘However, the company did not forget the possibilities it had glimpsed.’
    • ‘Crucially, this was when I glimpsed for the first time a world of wealth and privilege, very different from mine.’
    • ‘I have been in the Cabinet and have glimpsed very senior political office and it's not everything it's made out to be.’
    • ‘Part of the continuing allure of police action films is the chance to get under the skin of a criminal, to glimpse into an alien world.’
    • ‘Through its hundreds of rooms, visitors can glimpse how life went on at court.’
    • ‘Maybe that's what a poet's job is: to make you glimpse what you have never seen for yourself.’
    • ‘It's like glimpsing in on a day in the life of the '70s.’
    • ‘Sleep leaves me and I groggily sit up, glimpsing at my watch.’
    catch sight of, catch a glimpse of, get a glimpse of, see briefly, get a sight of, notice, discern, spot, spy, sight, note, pick out, make out
    View synonyms
    1. 1.1archaic no object Shine or appear faintly or intermittently.
      ‘glow-worms glimpsing in the dark’
      • ‘Rare rays of sunlight glimpsed through the clouds, shining onto the square.’

Origin

Middle English (in the sense ‘shine faintly’): probably of Germanic origin; related to Middle High German glimsen, also to glimmer.