gaze

American  

[geyz] / geɪz /

verb (used without object)

gazes, present (3rd person singular) gazed, past participle, past gazing present participle

1. to look steadily and intently, as with great curiosity, interest, pleasure, or wonder.

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noun

gazes plural

1. a steady or intent look.

2. Heraldry. at gaze, (of a deer or deerlike animal) represented as seen from the side with the head looking toward the spectator.

   a stag at gaze.

gaze British  

/ ɡeɪz /

verb

1. (intr) to look long and fixedly, esp in wonder or admiration

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noun

1. a fixed look; stare

Synonym Usage

Gaze, stare, gape suggest looking fixedly at something. To gaze is to look steadily and intently at something, especially at that which excites admiration, curiosity, or interest: to gaze at scenery, at a scientific experiment. To stare is to gaze with eyes wide open, as from surprise, wonder, alarm, stupidity, or impertinence: to stare unbelievingly or rudely. Gape is a word with uncomplimentary connotations; it suggests open-mouthed, often ignorant or rustic wonderment or curiosity: to gape at a tall building or a circus parade.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• gazer
  noun
• gazeless
  adjective
• ungazing
  adjective
• gazingly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• gazes
  plural

Participles

• gazing
  present
• gazed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• gaze
  simple
• gazes
  simple
• have gazed
  perfect
• has gazed
  perfect
• am gazing
  progressive
• are gazing
  progressive
• is gazing
  progressive
• have been gazing
  perfect progressive
• has been gazing
  perfect progressive

Past

• gazed
  simple
• had gazed
  perfect
• was gazing
  progressive
• were gazing
  progressive
• had been gazing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will gaze
  simple
• will have gazed
  perfect
• will be gazing
  progressive
• will have been gazing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of gaze

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English gasen; compare Norwegian, Swedish (dialect) gasa “to look”

Explanation

When someone lays eyes on you and keeps looking, it is a gaze or a stare. You can gaze back or just say, "Take a picture; it lasts longer." Gaze is both a verb and a noun. When people daydream, they often gaze off into the distance without focusing on anything. Another type of gaze, though, is to look very intently at something, as when you gaze at the sky making pictures out of clouds. A contest to see who will blink first means taking a long gaze into someone's eyes, and this type of gaze (the noun) will leave your eyes in a bit of a haze when you're done.

Example Sentences

By 2021, they reached South Tufa, where tourists congregate to gaze at the rock formations.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 30, 2026

The group's gaze barely shifted as the game kicked off thousands of miles away.

From BBC • Jun. 27, 2026

In the darkness of a market in the central Gaza Strip, where power outages are a part of daily life, a brightly lit screen showing a World Cup match holds everyone's gaze.

From Barron's • Jun. 18, 2026

Mboladinga is the Congolese national team’s most famous fan, known for his practice of holding a statue-like pose and steely gaze throughout entire games.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 15, 2026

I direct my gaze to my ceiling, fighting the burn of frustrated tears that threatens behind my eyes.

From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam