Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A brief, incomplete view or look.
  • noun Archaic A brief flash of light.
  • intransitive verb To obtain a brief, incomplete view of.
  • intransitive verb To look briefly; glance.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A transient gleam; a momentary ray or flash of light.
  • noun A transient or hurried view; a glance, as in passing; hence, a momentary or chance experience of anything; a faint perception.
  • noun A faint trace or share; a slight tinge.
  • To glimmer; shine.
  • To come into momentary view; appear transiently or as in a flash.
  • To look momentarily or accidentally.
  • To get a momentary view of; see transiently.
  • To show or cause to be seen as by a glimpse. We conclude this survey with the mention of the psychology of the developing child, glimpsing as it does, in the budding capabilities of the infant, the microcosm of the race and an epitome of the struggle for civilization.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun A sudden flash; transient luster.
  • noun A short, hurried view; a transitory or fragmentary perception; a quick sight.
  • noun A faint idea; an inkling.
  • intransitive verb to appear by glimpses; to catch glimpses.
  • transitive verb To catch a glimpse of; to see by glimpses; to have a short or hurried view of.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A brief look, glance, or peek.
  • verb transitive To see or view briefly or incompletely.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • verb catch a glimpse of or see briefly
  • noun a vague indication
  • noun a quick look
  • noun a brief or incomplete view

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English glimsen, to glisten, glance; see ghel- in Indo-European roots.]

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Examples

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  • my dad said he took a glimpse at the car a friend bought and it was in good condition

    October 31, 2010