I. peer 1 /pɪə $ pɪr/ BrE AmE noun [countable]
[ Date: 1200-1300 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: per , from Latin par 'equal' ; ⇨ ↑ par ]
1 . [usually plural] formal your peers are the people who are the same age as you, or who have the same type of job, social class etc:
American children did less well in math than their peers in Japan.
Staff members are trained by their peers.
⇨ ↑ peer group , ↑ peer pressure
2 . a member of the British ↑ nobility ⇨ House of Lords , peerage
⇨ ↑ life peer
II. peer 2 BrE AmE verb [intransitive always + adverb/preposition]
[ Date: 1500-1600 ; Origin: Perhaps from appear ]
to look very carefully at something, especially because you are having difficulty seeing it:
He was peering through the wet windscreen at the cars ahead.
Philippa peered into the darkness.
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ look to turn your eyes towards someone or something, so that you can see them:
You should never look directly at the sun.
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After a while, he turned and looked at me.
▪ have/take a look especially spoken to look at something quickly, especially in order to find or check something:
I’ll have a look in my desk.
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Take a look at this!
▪ glance to look at someone or something for a short time and then look quickly away:
Damien glanced nervously at his watch.
▪ peek/peep ( also take a peek/peep ) to look quickly at something. Used especially when you are not supposed to look, or when you are looking through a small gap:
The door was open so he peeked inside.
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Katy peeped at her birthday present on the table.
▪ peer to look very carefully, especially because you cannot see well:
Kenji was peering at the screen.
▪ glare to look at someone in an angry way:
She glared at me as I got up to leave.
▪ stare to look at someone or something for a long time without moving your eyes:
It’s rude to stare.
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She stared straight into the camera.
▪ gaze to look at someone or something for a long time, often without realizing that you are doing it:
She gazed out of the window.
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He lay on his bed gazing at the ceiling.
▪ gape to look at someone or something for a long time, usually with your mouth open, because you are very shocked or surprised:
People gaped at him with wide-open mouths.
▪ regard formal to look at someone or something, especially in a particular way:
He regarded her steadily.