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to glass

to glass

1 8.8
To look over a wide area with binoculars to find animals
  • verb
  • /ɡlæs/
  • Jargon
translation icon : observar con prismáticos
  • At the top of a rise, we stopped to glass the distant fields.
  • glass with binoculars
  • glass the area
  • glass the hillside

Examples

  • YOU GOTTA SIT UP HERE AND PUT YOUR TIME IN AND BE VERY METHODICAL ABOUT GLASSING AN AREA, AND YOU GOTTA ALSO REMEMBER IT'S NICE TO SPOT IT, BUT YOU GOTTA ALSO REMEMBER, UH, WHAT'S IT GONNA TAKE TO GET IT OUT.

  • Stuart stood right there on the lawn before the porch, taking turns glassing the far side of the river and talking.

    Fiction book (1997)
  • Get on the com and tell Fleet to glass that rock.

  • Have them glass this river, upstream and down.

  • With night vision goggles, they glass the house.

    Fiction book (1995)
  • Summer is a great time to glass agricultural fields to locate bachelor groups of bucks.

    Blog text (33)
  • "I bet they crawled up those hills every night and glassed us."

    Fiction book (2001)
  • We'd glassed his thickets and aspen groves and the low sage ridges where he ran.

    Fiction book (1994)
  • ANDY BASSICH: I'M HEADING UP TO, UH, ANOTHER PEAK HERE THAT I REALLY LIKE GLASSING FROM.

  • Nothing flushes from the creek, so we raise our binoculars and glass the hillside across the valley.

Idioms

Hold up a drink with others to celebrate someone or something

glass half-empty
  • Informal
2 6.5

A person who often sees the negative side of things

To overcome barriers that stop women or minority groups getting higher jobs

To focus on the good parts of a situation instead of the bad

1 9.1

Entering a strange, unreal world where usual rules are reversed

1 5.0

In a glass case so people can see but not touch it

To blame others when you have the same faults

Act carefully to avoid causing trouble in a tense, painful situation

Phrasal Verbs

1 6.7

To enclose a balcony, porch, or patio with clear panels to make a closed room

Eyes or face become dull and show no expression

Compounds

122 1.0

A cup filled with water for drinking

21 4.4

Colored pieces joined to make pretty windows that show pictures

A small glass you hold to make things look larger

glass ceiling
  • Literature
14 4.0

An invisible barrier that stops women and minorities from reaching top jobs

13 3.4

Large flat sheets of clear glass used for windows and doors

13 1.8

A small glass that holds one small drink of strong alcohol like whiskey or tequila

A window made of small colored glass pieces that makes colored light, often in churches

looking glass
  • Archaic
10 8.7

A mirror often used to check your face and clothes

7 6.0

A small glass object that people wear to replace a lost eye

A flat sheet of glass that fits in a window or door

A thing made from glass that breaks easily and lets light through

4 1.0

A small glass for drinking water

A container to drink from, usually for water or juice

3 1.0

A flat piece of clear glass that sits in a window or door to let light in

glass-half-full
  • Informal
3 5.8

Seeing the good side of things

glass tube
  • Specialized
3 2.9

A thin round container made of glass used in a lab to hold liquids

2 1.0

A glass used for drinking beer, often larger than a regular glass

2 5.3

A type of glass shaped with many flat, shiny sides for decoration

glass jaw
  • Informal
2 7.9

A weakness that makes someone easily knocked out in a fight

safety glass
  • Specialized
2 3.8

Glass with a plastic layer between sheets that stops it breaking into sharp pieces

1 3.9

A curved cover of glass that protects things and lets light in

glass house
  • Informal
1 6.5

A situation where someone is open to criticism for their own faults

1 3.0

A glass with a short stem and wide bowl for serving brandy

A tall, straight glass used for serving mixed drinks with ice like a gin and tonic

volcanic glass
  • Specialized
1 6.7

A hard shiny rock made when hot lava cools and hardens very fast

1 5.3

A small pair of binoculars you use to look at distant things outdoors

glass fiber
  • Specialized
1 4.1

A thin glass thread that carries light in cables and instruments

An art object made by shaping glass into a form you can see and touch

optical glass
  • Specialized
1 6.0

A clear, strong glass that lens makers use for camera and telescope lenses

A sheet of glass made with layers of plastic so it does not break into sharp pieces

A fine, beautiful glass object made in Venice, often brightly coloured and carefully shaped

A sheet made of two glass layers with plastic between them to stop breaking into pieces

lead glass
  • Specialized
1 6.3

Glass made with small amounts of the metal lead that is very clear and sparkly

1 3.2

A small picture on screens used to open a search

1 5.4

A milky white, slightly see-through material used for bowls and vases

1 3.7

A small tool with a sharp wheel used to score and cut glass sheets

glass chin
  • Jargon
1 8.8

A weak jaw that makes someone easy to knock out

1 4.9

A person who cuts or engraves glass as a job

glass lizard
  • Specialized
1 9.2

A legless lizard that looks like a snake, has eyelids and ear openings, and can grow its tail again

1 5.5

A glass of red wine called claret often served with a meal

1 3.8

It looks and feels like smooth clear glass

quartz glass
  • Specialized
1 6.8

A clear, hard material made mostly from pure sand that resists high heat and chemicals

A tall, narrow glass with a short stem for layered cold desserts like ice cream and fruit

1 9.9

A roast pheasant served under a glass cover in fine restaurants

pier glass
  • Archaic
1 8.9

A tall narrow mirror on the wall between two windows

Glass that shows soft mixed colors and people use for stained-glass windows and lamps

sheet glass
  • Specialized
1 3.7

Thin flat glass that is made in large sheets for windows and mirrors

wire glass
  • Specialized
1 5.2

Glass with wire mesh inside that holds pieces if it breaks

A bell-shaped glass cover used to protect or display objects and to hold gases

cellular glass
  • Specialized
7.0

A light hard foam made from crushed glass that keeps heat in and resists water

9.9

A tall full-length mirror in a frame that can tilt

cover glass
  • Specialized
4.8

A thin flat piece of glass placed over a specimen on a microscope slide

cover glass
  • Specialized
3.4

A hard outer layer of glass that protects a device screen from scratches and drops

crown glass
  • Specialized
9.0

A type of glass lens makers use that bends light little and keeps colours from separating

crown glass
  • Archaic
9.7

Old window glass you get by blowing hot glass into a round disk and spinning it flat

A glass thermometer with alcohol that rises when it gets warm and falls when it gets cold

expanded glass
  • Specialized
6.8

A light, hard, insulating material used in buildings to keep heat in

flint glass
  • Specialized
7.9

A heavy glass that bends light strongly used for lenses and prisms

A tall, narrow glass that holds champagne or sparkling wine

foam glass
  • Specialized
6.7

A light hard material made from melted sand with many small air pockets used for insulation and building

A small glass for drinking a little sweet drink with alcohol after dinner

9.9

A large evergreen tree from India and Burma with leaves that are silvery underneath

A small coastal tropical tree with silvery undersides on its leaves

A glass tube with mercury that measures body temperature

A glass tube containing mercury that rises to show temperature

glass furnace
  • Specialized
5.6

A large hot oven that melts glass for making bottles and windows

glass bone disease
  • Specialized
5.2

A rare condition where bones are very weak and break easily

glass snake
  • Specialized
9.4

A legless lizard with a long tail that breaks off and regrows to escape predators

glass sponge
  • Specialized
8.8

A sea animal with a skeleton of thin glass-like threads that lives on the ocean floor

A small glass part on baby bottles that babies drink from

glass wool
  • Specialized
5.4

A soft mass of very thin glass threads used to keep buildings warm and quiet

A person who cuts or makes patterns in glass

ground glass
  • Specialized
8.0

Very small pieces of glass used like sand to clean or smooth things

How Thoroughly

survey
97 2.8
to glass
  • Jargon
1 8.8
to sweep
127 2.3
to scan
127 2.7
to glance
299 1.5

Surface Forms

glass infinitive
glassed past
glassed past participle
glassing present participle
glasses third person singular

Etymology

To glass an area (to scan with binoculars) comes from using a glass lens or spyglass to look far away, so the verb comes from the optical device made of glass.