to espy

Examples

• All

• "Once Audubon thought he had espied some purple gallinules there, but his exhilaration passed quickly when he realized their little bodies were so mangled that I could not see one fit to draw."

  Academic text (1999)

• I espy the monster, as I must, in his lair, a vast apartment brightly lit with tapers, its walls encrusted with mirrors.

  Fiction book (1996)

• But do it when the next thing he espies may be the lady:

  Return with Honor (1999)

• At its most elemental, danger is easily espied.

  Blog text (24)

• From time to time, he espies them scurrying to hide behind trees, and he believes he is closing in on them.

  Blog text (24)

• Straight will I bring you to the loathsome pit... where I espied the tiger fast asleep.

  Titus (1999)

• As he nears the portcullis, he espies something twinkling on the ground.

  Fiction book (1994)

• At last, though, I espied him preening in the middle of a small group of maidens, over by the electric fountain we had installed for the ceremony.

  Fiction book (1997)

• I was sitting on Ashley's (formerly The Girl, then The Woman, now just Ashley) front porch and espied a dirt dauber nest on her east wall, just by a window.

  Blog text (3)

• Among business papers the next evening, while settling the purchase of a dilapidated old mansion facing the couple's home in the Baltic town, Nosferatu espies a small framed portrait of the wife, which he beholds admiringly, rather like a hero of romance falling in love with a picture.

  Academic text (1993)

Synonyms

S

to spot

vsto espy

576 2.1

To notice someone or something, especially when it is hard

is about noticing partial or distant appearance rather than identifying it

G

to glance

vsto espy

299 1.5

To look quickly at someone or something

serves to indicate partial or distant visibility rather than a quick intentional view

G

to glance at

vsto espy

150 2.0

Look quickly at someone or something

is used for noting partial or distant appearance rather than an intentional quick view

G

to get a look

vsto espy

88 2.8

To see someone or something for a short time

focuses on partial or distant visibility rather than merely short viewing

S

to spy

vsto espy

40 3.1

To notice something suddenly or after looking for it

emphasizes partial or distant visibility rather than surprise or deliberate search

C

to catch a glimpse

vsto espy

34 3.4

To see someone or something for a very short time

is used for noticing things partly or at a distance rather than very briefly

P

to peep

vsto espy

30 3.2

To look quickly and secretly at something you are not supposed to see

focuses on partial or distant visibility rather than secretive or hidden viewing

S

to sight

vsto espy

26 2.8

To suddenly see something for a short time

stresses partial or distant visibility rather than sudden brief perception

C

to catch sight

vsto espy

16 3.0

To see something for a short time, usually by chance

highlights partial visibility or distance rather than just sudden noticing

C

to catch sight of

vsto espy

15 2.4

To see someone or something suddenly and for a short time

focuses on partial visibility or distance rather than general noticing

D

to descry

vsto espy

• Archaic

1 9.9

To see a person or thing that is hard to notice

focuses on partial or distant visibility rather than only difficulty to see

Antonyms

I

to ignore

∞ 1.0

Choose not to pay attention to someone or something

O

to overlook

243 2.9

To not notice someone or something you should see

How Visible

to see

∞ 1.0

to notice

∞ 1.0

to spot

576 2.1

to espy

• Archaic

1 9.9

to glimpse

41 3.2

Surface Forms

Etymology