to descry
1
9.9
- verb
- /dɪˈskraɪ/
- Archaic
- He tried to descry the hidden treasure beneath the underbrush in the old forest.
Examples
-
The sea turns to a cool, profound emerald, and we descry again on the horizon the bamboo wings of the fishing and coasting junks.
Blog text (22) -
And I would much rather bear the burden for descrying and witnessing to the blood and stone I see within those hallowed pages than to be accused of eviscerating the text with piety or betraying it with sweetness and vacuity.
Academic text (2001) -
But it has to be said this is largely due to what can only be descried as a conspiracy against me.
-
I have said men descry what pleases them because what appears reasonable, that is what they approve.
Fiction book (1991) -
Without question, the minds of women anticipate endless journeys to kingdoms that men fail to descry.
Fiction book (1991) -
We were descried.
-
Wryly, he noted similar expressions on Grely's face when the other descried him.
Fiction book (1999) -
From the viewpoint at the top of the hill, I could descry the distant mountains through the mist.
-
With her binoculars, she was able to descry a ship on the far horizon.
Synonyms
585
2.1
To notice someone or something, especially when it is hard
36
3.1
To notice something suddenly or after looking for it
34
2.8
To suddenly see something for a short time
18
3.0
To see something for a short time, usually by chance
17
2.4
To see someone or something suddenly and for a short time
2
9.9
To see something partly or far away
Antonyms
How Visible
Surface Forms
Etymology
The word descry comes from old French parts de- and crier, which meant 'to cry out' and is like the English word cry. It first meant 'call out' or 'announce' and later came to mean 'spot' or 'see' something far away, so to descry is to 'catch sight of' something hard to see.