luk v., n., & int. --v. 1 a intr. (often foll. by at)
use one's
sight;
turn one's eyes in
some direction. b tr. turn one's eyes
on;
contemplate or
examine (looked me in
the eyes). 2 intr. a
make a
visual or
mental search (I'll look in the morning). b (foll. by at)
consider, examine (we must look at the facts). 3 intr. (foll. by for) a search
for. b
hope or be on the
watch for. c
expect. 4 intr.
inquire (when
one looks deeper). 5 intr.
have a specified
appearance;
seem (look a fool; look foolish). 6 intr. (foll. by to) a consider;
take care of; be
careful about (look to the future). b
rely on (a
person or thing) (you can look to me for support). c expect; count on;
aim at. 7 intr. (foll. by into)
investigate or examine. 8 tr. (foll. by
what,
where, etc. + clause)
ascertain or
observe by sight (look where we are). 9 intr. (of a thing)
face or be turned, or have or
afford an
outlook, in a specified direction. 10 tr. express,
threaten, or
show (an
emotion etc.) by one's looks. 11 intr. (foll. by
that + clause) take care; make
sure. 12 intr. (foll. by to + infin.) expect (am looking to
finish this today). --n. 1 an
act of looking; the directing of the eyes to look at a
thing or person; a glance (a
scornful look). 2 (in
sing. or pl.) the appearance of a face; a person's
expression or
personal aspect. 3 the (esp. characteristic) appearance of a thing (the
place has a
European look). --int. (also look here!)
calling attention, expressing a
protest, etc. ølook
after 1
attend to; take care of. 2
follow with the
eye. 3
seek for. look one's
age appear to be as
old as one
really is. look-alike a person or thing closely resembling
another (a
Prince Charles look-alike). look
alive (or lively) colloq. be
brisk and alert. look as if
suggest by appearance the
belief that (it looks as if he's gone). look
back 1 (foll. by on,
upon, to) turn one's thoughts to (something past). 2 (usu. with neg.)
cease to
progress (since
then we have
never looked back). 3
Brit. make a
further visit later. look
before you leap avoid precipitate action. look daggers see
DAGGER. look down on (or upon or look down one's
nose at)
regard with
contempt or a
feeling of
superiority. look for
trouble see TROUBLE. look
forward to
await (an expected event) eagerly or with specified feelings. look in make a
short visit or
call. look-in n. colloq. 1 an
informal call or visit. 2 a
chance of participation or
success (never gets a look-in). look a person in the eye (or eyes or face) look
directly and unashamedly at
him or
her. look like 1 have the appearance of. 2 Brit. seem to be (they look like winning). 3 threaten or
promise (it looks like rain). 4
indicate the
presence of (it looks like woodworm). look on 1 (often foll. by as) regard (looks on you as a
friend; looked on
them with disfavour). 2 be a
spectator; avoid participation. look
oneself appear in
good health (esp. after
illness etc.). look
out 1
direct one's sight or put one's
head out of a
window etc. 2 (often foll. by for) be
vigilant or prepared. 3 (foll. by on,
over, etc.) have or afford a specified outlook. 4 search for and
produce (shall look one out for you). look over 1
inspect or
survey (looked over the house). 2 examine (a
document etc.)
esp. cursorily (shall look it over). look
round 1 look in
every or another direction. 2 examine the objects of
interest in a place (you must
come and look round sometime). 3 examine the possibilities etc. with a
view to deciding on a
course of action. look-see colloq. a survey or inspection. look
sharp act promptly; make
haste (orig. =
keep strict watch). look
small see SMALL. look
through 1 examine the contents of, esp. cursorily. 2
penetrate (a
pretence or pretender) with
insight. 3
ignore by pretending
not to see (I waved, but you
just looked through me). look up 1 search for (esp.
information in a book). 2 colloq. go to visit (a person) (had
intended to look them up). 3
raise one's eyes (looked up
when I
went in). 4
improve, esp. in
price,
prosperity, or well-being (things are looking up
all round). look a person up and down
scrutinize a person keenly or contemptuously. look up to
respect or
venerate. not like the look of
find alarming or
suspicious. øø-looking adj. (in comb.). [OE locian f. WG]