look through

phrasal verb

looked through; looking through; looks through

: to read or briefly examine some of the pages of (a book, magazine, etc.)

She was looking through a magazine as she waited in the doctor's office.

: to look at the different parts of (a collection or group of things)

I looked through all his letters.

: to place one's eyes so as to see through (something)

look through a telescope

: to pretend not to see or recognize (someone) in a rude or unfriendly way

We used to be best friends but when she passed me on the street yesterday she looked (right/straight) through me without even saying hello!

Examples of look through in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Just like a math teacher, the chatbot can look through a phone’s camera lens or see a computer screen and help users solve a math problem in real time. —

Laura Bratton, Quartz, 13 May 2024 After looking through the dark upper chambers, the group worked its way down to the first floor, where Darren opened a bedroom door. —

Matt Thompson, SPIN, 13 May 2024 Check out some of the looks through the years that stole the show. —

Essence, 8 May 2024 The configuration positions the cockpit about halfway down the length of the aircraft, which means that the pilot does not look through a forward-facing window, but instead uses high-resolution cameras that feed a 4K monitor in the cockpit, called the eXternal Vision System. —

J. George Gorant, Robb Report, 8 May 2024 The book was thought to be the director’s final project, until Kraus came across another manuscript of Romero’s while looking through an archival collection at the University of Pittsburgh library. —

Carly Tagen-Dye, Peoplemag, 7 May 2024 The Maryland State Police Homicide Unit took over the investigation and looked through the house for evidence. —

Landon Mion, Fox News, 7 May 2024 With light-medium to medium-full coverage, the pigments are suspended within the balmy base for a translucency that allows light through yet diffuses discoloration—like looking through multiple layers of mesh. —

Katie Becker, Vogue, 4 May 2024 Between 40 and 45 protesters were arrested as police looked through tents set up in the encampment near Beinecke Plaza, Yale Police Chief Anthony Campbell told the Yale Daily News reported. —

Fox News, 22 Apr. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'look through.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.