A Glimpse Is Too Short to Be a Look
A glimpse is a brief and partial sight of something. The word carries its own shortness, which is why you catch one rather than take one.
A glimpse is a very brief view: enough to know something was there, not enough to describe it. The verbs English uses give the game away. You *catch* a glimpse, as if it were escaping; you never *take* one, the way you take a look.
- A brief or partial view. *A glimpse of the sea.*
- A brief insight. *A glimpse into their working method.*
- To see briefly. *She glimpsed him in the crowd.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | glimpse | A quick glimpse. |
| Plural | glimpses | Glimpses of blue sky. |
| Verb | glimpse | I glimpsed the roof. |
| Past | glimpsed | Barely glimpsed. |
| Phrase | catch a glimpse | Catch a glimpse of her. |
How it is used in a sentence
- We caught a glimpse of the castle through the trees.Catch a glimpse of is the standard phrase.
- The letters give a glimpse into her childhood.Figurative: partial insight.
- He glimpsed movement at the window.The verb needs no adverb; brevity is built in.
Ways of seeing
- Glimpse — brief and partial
- Glance — short but deliberate
- Peek — quick and often secret
- Stare — long and fixed
- Gaze — long and absorbed
From Middle English *glimsen*, related to *gleam* and to German *glimmen*, to glow faintly. The family is full of dim flickering light: glimmer, glitter, glisten, gloaming.
Glimpse or glance?
A glance is something you do; a glimpse is something you get. You glance at a page and catch a glimpse of a face.
Can you glimpse something on purpose?
Not really. The word implies the view was brief and partly accidental, which is why deliberate looking is glancing.