different between glance vs discover

English

Alternative forms

• glaunce (obsolete)

Etymology

From a conflation of Middle English glacen (“to graze, strike a glancing blow”) and Middle English glenten (“to look askance”). Middle English glacen came from Old French glacier (“to slip, make slippery”), which was a derivative of glace (“ice”). Middle English glenten was derived from Old Norse *glenta (“to shine; look”), which ultimately comes from Proto-Germanic *glintan? (“to shine; look”). Middle English glenten is also the source of glint.

The form of the modern word takes largely after its Latinate parent, save for the medial -n-. On the other hand, the most common sense in modern usage, "to look briefly (at something)", comes from its Germanic parent. The sense "to sparkle" does as well. Most other senses derive from Middle English glacen.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /?l??ns/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /?læns/
• Rhymes: -??ns, -æns

Verb

glance (third-person singular simple present glances, present participle glancing, simple past and past participle glanced)

1. (intransitive) To look briefly (at something).

   She glanced at her reflection as she passed the mirror.
2. (intransitive) To graze at a surface.
3. To sparkle.

   The spring sunlight was glancing on the water of the pond.

   • From art, from nature, from the schools, / Let random influences glance, / Like light in many a shivered lance, / That breaks about the dappled pools.

4. (intransitive) To move quickly, appearing and disappearing rapidly; to be visible only for an instant at a time; to move interruptedly; to twinkle.
5. (intransitive) To strike and fly off in an oblique direction; to dart aside.
   • 1833, Mary Shelley, The Mortal Immortal

     I started — I dropped the glass — the fluid flamed and glanced along the floor, while I felt Cornelius's gripe at my throat, as he shrieked aloud, "Wretch! you have destroyed the labour of my life!"

6. (soccer) To hit lightly with the head, make a deft header.
7. To make an incidental or passing reflection; to allude; to hint; often with at.
   • c. 1703-1720, Jonathan Swift, An Essay on the Fates of Clergymen

     He glanced at a certain reverend doctor.

8. (ichthyology) A type of interaction between parent fish and offspring in which juveniles swim toward and rapidly touch the sides of the parent, in most cases feeding on parental mucus. Relatively few species glance, mainly some Cichlidae.

Synonyms

• (To see something briefly): see

Derived terms

Translations

Noun

glance (countable and uncountable, plural glances)

1. A brief or cursory look.
2. A deflection.
3. (cricket) A stroke in which the ball is deflected to one side.
4. A sudden flash of light or splendour.
5. An incidental or passing thought or allusion.
   • c. 1782, William Cowper, The Solitude of Alexander Selkirk

     How fleet is a glance of the mind.

6. (mineralogy) Any of various sulphides, mostly dark-coloured, which have a brilliant metallic lustre.

7. (mineralogy) Glance coal.

Derived terms

Translations

English

Alternative forms

• discovre (obsolete)

Etymology

From Middle English discoveren, from Old French descovrir, from Late Latin discoper?re < discooperi?, discooper?re, from Latin dis- + cooperi?.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /d?s?k?v?/
• (Northern England) IPA^(key): /d?s?k?v?/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /d?s?k?v?/
• Rhymes: -?v?(?)
• Hyphenation: dis?cov?er

Verb

discover (third-person singular simple present discovers, present participle discovering, simple past and past participle discovered)

1. To find or learn something for the first time.
2. (transitive, obsolete) To remove the cover from; to uncover (a head, building etc.).
3. (transitive, now rare) To expose, uncover.

4. (transitive, chess) To create by moving a piece out of another piece's line of attack.

5. (law, transitive) To question (a person) as part of discovery in a lawsuit.
6. (transitive, archaic) To reveal (information); to divulge, make known.
   • 1625, Francis Bacon, Of Adversity

     Prosperity doth best discover vice; but adversity doth best discover virtue.

7. (transitive, obsolete) To reconnoitre, explore (an area).

   • they seyde the same, and were aggreed that Sir Clegis, Sir Claryon, and Sir Clement the noble, that they sholde dyscover the woodys, bothe the dalys and the downys.

8. (obsolete) To manifest without design; to show; to exhibit.
   • 1871, Charles John Smith}}, Synonyms Discriminated

     The youth discovered a taste for sculpture.

Synonyms

• (expose something previously covered): expose, reveal, uncover
• (find something for the first time): come across, find

Antonyms

• (expose something previously covered): conceal, cover, cover up, hide

Derived terms

• discovery
• discovered attack
• discovered check

Translations

See also

• invent
• detect
• find
• stumble upon

Anagrams

• codrives, discovre, divorces, divorcés