glimpse

glance, glimpse

A glance (which can be followed by at, into, over, or through) is a brief look

• (He cast a doting glance at his wife —M. Underwood, 1973

• There were glances of frustration as balls went astray and half-chances failed to be converted —Independent, 1999)

whereas a glimpse (which is usually followed by of) is what is seen by taking a glance rather than the glance itself

• (The automatic roof light gave me a quick glimpse of two men, then the driver reached up to switch it off —A. Ross, 1970

• Here's a possible glimpse of the future: It's the year 2030, our landfill rubbish dumps are full, there are tight restrictions on shipping our junk to Third World countries, and we are producing more rubbish than ever —Leicester Mercury, 2004).

There is a corresponding difference in the use of the verbs, and glimpse can be transitive (take a direct object) whereas glance requires a linking preposition:

• He glanced down at the face of his gold Rolex —W. Wager, 1970

• I wanted to glimpse the buildings, monuments and streets from which the nightmares of the past century had been unleashed —Daily Telegraph, 2004.