glimpse means chiefly followed by of: a brief and incomplete look. It carries an Arena rating of 1684, earned across 3 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, glimpse ranks #33 of 17,126 for Most Elegant Words, #51 of 42,762 for Qualifying, #789 of 17,134 for Most Malleable Words, #1,752 of 17,130 for Most Beautiful Words.
glimpse is pronounced /ˈɡlɪm(p)s/.
Why “glimpse” is a great word
A brief, incomplete, or momentary look at something, or the act of obtaining such a look. From Middle English glimsen (“to dazzle, glisten”), possibly from Old English *glimsian, from Proto-West Germanic *glimmisōjan, from Proto-Germanic *glimō (“to shine”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰley- (“to shine”); the noun is derived from the verb, first recorded in the verb sense in the 14th century. Unlike a deliberate, ricocheting “glance” or a faint, wavering “glimmer” of light, a glimpse is something almost stolen—an accidental capture rather than an intentional seeking. It is the stranger’s face caught in a passing train window, the sudden silver arc of a fish just beneath the water’s surface, or the brief, clarifying view of a path through the trees before the fog closes in again—each a luminous puncture in the veil of the ordinary, reminding us that most of what is, remains unseen.
Etymology
The verb is derived from earlier glimse (obsolete), from Middle English glimsen (“to dazzle; to glisten; to glance with the eyes”), possibly from Old English *glimsian, from Proto-West Germanic *glimmisōjan, from Proto-Germanic *glimō, from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰley- (“to shine”). Doublet of glimmer. The noun is derived from the verb. Cognates Dutch glimp (“glimpse”, noun) Middle Dutch glinsen (modern Dutch glinsteren (“to glint, glitter, shimmer, sparkle; to glance”), glimmen (“to gleam, shine”)) Middle High German glimsen (“to glow, smoulder”), glinsen (“to glimmer, shine”) Middle Low German glinsen, glintzen, glinzen (“to shimmer, shine”)
noun
- Chiefly followed by of: a brief and incomplete look.e.g.“I only got a glimpse of the car, so I can tell you the colour but not the registration number.”
- A brief, sudden flash of light; a glimmer.
- A faint or imprecise idea; an inkling.
- A brief, unspecified amount of time; a moment.e.g.“[…] Alwin smiled, / When aught that from his young lips archly fell / The gloomy film from Harold's eye beguiled; / And pleased for a glimpse appeared the woeful Childe.” — 1809–1818 (date written), Lord Byron, “Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage. Canto the First.”, in Thomas Moore, editor, The Works of Lord Byron: […], volume VIII, London: John Murray, […], published 1832, →OCL
- A faint (and often temporary) appearance; a tinge.
verb
- To see or view (someone, or something tangible) briefly and incompletely.
- To perceive (something intangible) briefly and incompletely.e.g.“I have only begun to glimpse the magnitude of the problem.”
- Chiefly followed by at or upon: to look at briefly and incompletely; to glance.e.g.“The door always opens directly into the kitchen, without any vestibule; and, glimpsing in, you see that a cottager's life must be the very plainest and homeliest that ever was lived by men and women.” — 1855 August 12 (date written), Nathaniel Hawthorne, “August 12th. [1855.]”, in Passages from the English Note-books of Nathaniel Hawthorne, volume I, Boston, Mass.: Fields, Osgood, & Co., published 18
- To shine with a faint, unsteady light; to glimmer, to shimmer.
- To appear or start to appear, especially faintly or unclearly; to dawn.
- Sometimes followed by out: to provide a brief and incomplete look.
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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