peekn.1
/piːk/, U.S. /pik/ 1. A peep, a glance; a quick or furtive look. Frequently in to take (also have, etc.) a peek. Also in extended use. Cf. keek n., peep n.2
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > sight and vision > a look or glance > [noun] > peep or keek
peek1636
peep1730
pry1750
keeka1774
deek1833
skeet1844
toot1865
society > computing and information technology > hardware > [noun] > memory > function to ascertain content
peek1636
1636 S. Rogers Diary 8 Oct. (2004) 75 Deliver mee for thy goodnes sake; one peeke into heaven, one crevis of light.
1698 V. Alsop Vindic. Faithful Rebuke ix. 115 That might justifie a Peek, and involve them both in guilt.
1844 ‘J. Slick’ High Life N.Y. II. 41 I jest give a peak in for a minit, and streaked it upstairs.
1869 L. M. Alcott Little Women II. xx. 300 ‘Ain't it a relishin' sight to see her settin' there,’..muttered old Hannah, who could not resist frequent ‘peeks’ through the slide.
1884 E. P. Roe Nature's Serial Story vi Their father gave them a peek into the..brooding-room.
1938 E. Ambler Cause for Alarm vii. 116 Supposing you take an occasional peek at these other guys' hands, tell me what you see.
1969 Daily Mail 16 Jan. 5/1 After insertion into Earth orbit I had a lot of tests to perform..but..I must confess to a sneak peek out of the window.
1993 R. Lowe & W. Shaw Travellers 32 Somebody needs to go to the council offices and get a peek at the land register.
2. Scottish. A small point of light; a small tongue or jet of flame.
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the world > matter > properties of materials > temperature > heat > burning > fire or flame > [noun] > flame or blaze > small flame > small point of flame
peek1838
pea1890
peekiea1893
1838 Wilson's Hist. Tales Borders V. 55 The cannel had just a wee peek o' white lowe i' the middle.
1887 D. Donaldson Jamieson's Sc. Dict. Suppl. Peak, peek, a very small quantity, a mere pick; as, ‘a peak o' licht, a peek o' fire’.
1903 Dundee Advertiser 22 Dec. 7 By the feeble light of the gas jet, which was burning at a ‘peak’.
1959 People's Jrnl. (Aberdeen) 5 Dec. 13 Naethin' bit a peek o' a lantern tae lich'en the darkness o' a lang mornin'.
1999 J. J. Graham Shetl. Dict. Peeg, glimmer. Dey wis jöst a peeg o licht i da lamp.
3. Computing. (Frequently in form PEEK.) A statement or function in BASIC for reading the contents of a memory location whose address is specified. Cf. poke n.5 4.
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society > computing and information technology > programming language > [noun] > high-level language > statements or functions in BASIC
peek1978
poke1978
1978 M. Waite & M. Pardee BASIC Primer v. 159 peek and poke ( exam and fill in some BASICS) allow direct control over individual memory locations.
1982 I. N. Stewart & R. Jones Peek, Poke, Byte & Ram! 77 We can find out exactly which bytes are stored in which addresses in the ROM and RAM by using peek.
1985 Personal Computer World Feb. 143 (advt.) Built in Atari Basic programming language supporting peek, poke and USR plus at least 8 other languages available.
1993 E. S. Raymond New Hacker's Dict. (ed. 2) 324 A real operating system provides useful, higher-level services for the tasks commonly performed with peeks and pokes on micros.
Compounds
peek-hole n. a peephole.
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the world > physical sensation > sight and vision > thing seen > place where view obtained > [noun] > hole or window
oillet1333
tooting-holea1382
tote-hole1561
peepholea1570
eyehole1655
eyelet1762
eyelet hole1774
eye-loop1803
Judas hole1858
peek-hole1867
oillet pane1873
squint1891
observation window1897
viewport1942
port1949
the world > space > relative position > condition of being open or not closed > an opening or aperture > [noun] > for looking through
oillet1333
loop1393
sight-hole1559
tote-hole1561
peepholea1570
loophole1591
eyehole1655
grille1686
slit17..
eyelet1762
eyelet hole1774
spying-hole1791
eye-loop1803
squint1839
hagioscope1840
Judas hole1858
peek-hole1867
oillet pane1873
spy-hole1888
squint1891
viewport1942
1867 E. Bacon Among Cotton Thieves 224 The peek-holes have been measured, marked and sawed, under Bailey's own eye.
1910 ‘M. Twain’ Speeches 222 I peeked through the little peek-holes they have in theatre curtains.
1989 A. C. Parker Seneca Myths & Folk Tales 121 Well put your hands through the peek-hole and I will tie them to the post.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2005; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
peekn.2int.
/piːk/, U.S. /pik/, Scottish English /pik/, Irish English /piːk/ Chiefly Scottish and Irish English (northern).
The shrill note or cry of a bird. Also as int. Cf. peep n.1
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the world > animals > birds > sound or bird defined by > [noun] > cry or call > thin or shrill
pew?a1500
yelping1593
pipe1721
whistle1784
queek1786
peek1834
pipe note1854
wheep1860
1834 R. Mudie Feathered Tribes Brit. Islands I. 290 The birds [sc. meadow-pipits]..continue uttering their feeble and complaining ‘peek’.
1870 W. J. Courthope Paradise of Birds 82 There came a ‘cuckoo!’ there a pipit's ‘peek!’
1881 W. Paul Past & Present 150 ‘Peak, peak,’ cried the chucken..An aye my deuky cried quaak-quaak.
1931 Aberd. Press & Jrnl. 11 Feb. 2/7 Aboot Braid Scots o' fader's day I hear a skirlie-weeack, An' fain wud I birze in my say, Tho' word is bit a peeack.
1972 H. Heinzel et al. Birds of Brit. & Europe (BNC) 184 American Nighthawk... Call a nasal ‘peent’ or ‘peeik’.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2005; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
peekv.1
/piːk/, U.S. /pik/ 1.
a. intransitive. To look through a narrow opening; to look into or out of an enclosed or concealed space; (also) to glance or look furtively at, to pry.
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the world > physical sensation > sight and vision > seeing or looking > see [verb (intransitive)] > peep
beak?c1225
toot?c1225
prya1350
peekc1390
touta1400
keekc1405
peepa1500
outpeep1600
twire1602
teet1710
underpeep1827
c1390 Roberd of Cisyle (Vernon) (1930) 269 (MED) Alle men on him gon pyke [v.rr. keke, loke, prye], For he rod al oþer vnlyke.
a1425 (c1385) G. Chaucer Troilus & Criseyde (1987) iii. 60 His herte gan..shorte for to sike, And Pandarus..Com ner, and gan in at the curtyn pike And seyde, ‘God do boot on alle syke!’
a1529 J. Skelton Magnyfycence (?1530) sig. Biiiiv Why can ye not put out that foule freke No in euery corner he wyll peke.
1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 655/2 I peke or prie, je pipe hors.
1576 G. Gascoigne Steele Glas sig. F.jv That one eye winks, as though it were but blynd, That other pries and peekes in euery place.
1632 T. Heywood Iron Age iii. sig. G3 We shall haue him..come peaking into the Tents of the Greeks.
1681 Heraclitus Ridens 25 Oct. 1/1 As like one of your Smith-field Lions, as ever he can peke out of his Nyes.
1739 ‘R. Bull’ tr. F. Dedekind Grobianus i. iv. 36 He [sc. a Crocodile] gapes: the wing'd Inhabitant of air Does to his mouth in hopes of prey repair, In ev'ry hollow Tooth securely peak, And pick from thence th'Incumbrance with his Beak.
1789 Massachusetts Spy 18 June A vain trifling curiosity to pry into secrets, to meddle with the business of others, and to peek into privacies.
a1821 J. W. Masters Dick & Sal at Canterbury Fair in W. D. Parish & W. F. Shaw Dict. Kentish Dial. (1887) 47 We pook't and peek'd about Ta see what made it stick up.
1885 E. S. Morse Japanese Homes (1886) vii. 317 I was guilty of the impertinence of peeking into the cupboards.
1928 Publishers' Weekly 22 Sept. 1120/1 One cannot escape the temptation to peek at prices however and I found one marked six shillings and took it.
1968 Globe & Mail (Toronto) 15 Jan. 21/7 Jerry Tighe, of Whitworth College in Spokane, came close to a fall in the men's two miles when he peeked over his shoulder to check the field.
1990 A. Stoddard Gift of Let. ii. 142 I feel the way I would if someone violated the privacy of my diary by peeking inside.
b. intransitive. figurative. To appear as if looking out; to emerge or protrude a short distance into view. Cf. peep v.1 1a.
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the world > physical sensation > sight and vision > visibility > be visible [verb (intransitive)] > appear or become visible > slightly
beak?c1225
peekc1460
peepa1475
peer1568
glimpse1663
teeta1866
c1460 (?c1400) Tale of Beryn 678 (MED) Þe day began to rype, And the sonne, merely, vpward gan she pike, Pleying vndir the egge of þe firmament.
1658 G. Atwell Faithfull Surveyour xxxv. 106 I have sown pigeon-dung in an extream hot and dry year upon barley..when at harvest the barley hath scarce peeked out of the hose.
1669 J. Dryden Wks. (1885) III. 408 This love, that never could my youth engage, peeks out his coward head to dar my eye.
1879 Harper's Mag. Dec. 120/2 If a pin on his table had peeked up in his face..he would not have been more astounded.
1893 Field 27 May 770/3 Salmon were reported as showing, or rather ‘picking’, to use the local phrase.
1965 ‘S. d'Estrée’ tr. ‘P. Réage’ Story of O i. 20 A shirt whose lace frills peeked out from beneath his black vest.
1993 Holiday Which? Jan. 62/2 There's..a moose on the loose, its rack of antlers peeking out from a clump of aspen trees.
2. Computing. Frequently in form PEEK.
a. intransitive. To use peek (peek n.1 3) to read a memory location. Also with to. Cf. poke v.1 11.
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society > computing and information technology > hardware > use hardware [verb (intransitive)] > ascertain contents of memory
peek1978
1978 M. Waite & M. Pardee BASIC Primer v. 161 The variable X is set to the value found in memory location A by peeking at A.
1978 M. Waite & M. Pardee BASIC Primer v. 163 The action of peeking or pokeing to the location containing the speaker causes the cone to move.
1981 D. Inman et al. More TRS-80 BASIC ii. 20 Since you know the program is stored in RAM starting at memory location 17129, you can peek into that area of memory after you have entered your program.
1993 E. S. Raymond New Hacker's Dict. (ed. 2) 323 Much hacking on small, non-MMU micros consists of peeking around memory, more or less at random, to find the location where the system keeps interesting stuff.
b. transitive. To use peek to ascertain the contents of (a memory or memory location); to extract (data) from memory using peek.
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society > computing and information technology > hardware > use hardware [verb (transitive)] > ascertain memory contents
interrogate1964
peek1982
1982 I. N. Stewart & R. Jones Peek, Poke, Byte & Ram! 78 There are certainly some good reasons for peeking the ROM—you can find out how the ZX81 tells the TV to print a particular character.
1989 Computer Lang. (Nexis) 6 34 Although information can be peeked from these locations, pokeing new values has no ef[f]ect.
1992 Zzap 64! (BNC) Nov. 39 Is it possible to list a program after resetting the game with a reset switch..? If it's written in BASIC, yes, but if it's in machine code you can only peek individual addresses.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2005; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
peekv.2
/piːk/, U.S. /pik/, Scottish English /pik/, Irish English /piːk/ Scottish, Irish English (northern), and English regional (midlands).
intransitive. To make a slight or high-pitched sound; to peep, squeak, cheep.
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the mind > language > speech > manner of speaking > speak in a particular manner [verb (intransitive)] > shrilly or in a weak voice
creakc1440
shrillc1440
peep1567
chirp1604
pipe1675
peek1808
cheep1813
the world > physical sensation > hearing and noise > voice or vocal sound > quality of voice > [verb (intransitive)] > utter in thin or weak voice
shrillc1440
peep1567
chirp1604
peek1808
cheep1813
1808 J. Jamieson Etymol. Dict. Sc. Lang. To peak, peek, to peep, to speak with a small voice resembling that of a chicken.
1866 W. Gregor Dial. Banffshire (Philol. Soc.) 123 They peeackit, an' sang a wee filie, an' syne ga't up for an ill job.
1881 S. Evans Evans's Leicestershire Words (new ed.) Peak,..to cry like a young bird; squeak like a young mouse, etc.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2005; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.11636
n.2int.1834
v.1c1390v.21808