peek
verbnounnouncommon in dialogue
- //piːk//
To look slyly, or with the eyes half closed, or through a crevice; to peep.
verb
- 1
informalTo look slyly, or with the eyes half closed, or through a crevice; to peep.
Close your eyes, and no peeking!
- 2
informalTo be only slightly, partially visible, as if peering out from a hiding place.
A pale strip of white skin peeked out from under his waistband.
Her brown skin peeked through the empty gap in her clothing.
- 3
informalTo briefly move out of cover (to gather visual information).
Sniper watching the site; don't peek.
- 4
informalTo take a look at; to check out.
Peek my new shoes.
- 5
datedTo retrieve (a value) from a memory address.
We are peeking the value from the first index's memory location.
Etymology
From Middle English *peken, piken, pyken (“to peep”), probably a fusion of Middle English pepen (“to peep”) and keken, kiken (“to keek, look, spy”), equivalent to a blend of peep + keek. Perhaps also possibly a metathetic alteration of Middle English kepen, kipen, kypen (“to keep, look, observe, watch”).
noun
- 1
informalA quick glance or look.
noun
- 1
Variant of piqueinformalMisspelling of pique.
Forms
- plural
- peeks
- past tense
- peeked
- past participle
- peeked
- present participle
- peeking
- third person singular
- peeks
peek · To look slyly, or with the eyes half closed, or through a crevice; to peep.
Peek · A surname.peeking · The act of one who peeks.peel · To remove the skin or outer covering of.