aperçu
Americannoun
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a hasty glance; a glimpse.
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an immediate estimate or judgment; perception; insight.
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an outline or summary.
noun
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an outline; summary
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an insight
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of aperçu
First recorded in 1825–30; from French: literally, “perceived”; past participle of the verb apercevoir
Explanation
An apercu is a brief, clever review or summation of something. If your synopsis of last week's episode of your favorite TV show is funny and sharp, you can call it an apercu. Sometimes an apercu is simply a witty comment or a clever anecdote: "He is so fun at parties because he always comes up with such brilliant apercus." The word is often spelled with a cedilla, a French accent that softens the C so that it's pronounced like an S: aperçu. The word is from the French apercevoir, "to perceive."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
I guess we could fault Caleb for this aperçu, but in a novel that purports to be about the slippery idea of authorship, let’s blame Lipstein.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 18, 2022
“It’s an aperçu of Alex Trebek, human being. What is he like? What has he done? How did he screw up? Things like that.”
From Slate • Jul. 22, 2020
It includes the source of Judd’s aperçu, a 1974 Art in America article titled “Malevich: Independent Form, Color, Surface,” as well as essays by Yve-Alain Bois and other scholars.
From New York Times • Mar. 11, 2011
If I were to recast Montaigne's aperçu it would be thus: "Mistrust a man who takes games too seriously; it means he may be incapable of taking life seriously enough."
From The Guardian • Sep. 24, 2010
I hope, dear Uncle, you will in process of time give me the aperçu you mention, which would be so very interesting for me.
From The Letters of Queen Victoria : A Selection from Her Majesty's Correspondence between the Years 1837 and 1861 Volume 1, 1837-1843 by Esher, Reginald Baliol Brett, Viscount
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
