peek
Americanverb (used without object)
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peeks,
present (3rd person singular)
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peeked,
past participle, past
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peeking
present participle
noun
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peeks
plural
verb
noun
Usage
What's the difference between peek, peak, and pique? The word peek is most commonly used as a verb meaning to look at something quickly or sneakily and as a noun referring to such a look. The word peak refers to the top of a mountain or, more figuratively, to the highest point of something, as in the peak of my career. The less frequently used word pique is most commonly used as a verb meaning to arouse or excite a particular feeling, as in Advertisements are designed to pique your interest. The confusion surrounding the three words—all three of which can be used as both a verb and a noun—is mainly due to the fact that they are all pronounced the same. Since peek and peak are so close in spelling, one way to tell them apart is to remember that peek has two e’s, which kind of look like two little eyes peeking out between the p and the k. Another way to remember this is that peek has two e’s like look has two o’s. To remember what pique means (and how to spell it), remember that the things that pique your interest or curiosity are often unique. Here’s an example of peek, peak, and pique used correctly in a sentence. Example: The image of the strange mountain peak on the cover was meant to pique your curiosity, and it worked—you picked up the magazine to peek inside. Want to learn more? Read the breakdown of the difference between peeked, peaked, and piqued.
Synonym Usage
See peep 1.
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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peeksimple
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peekssimple
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have peekedperfect
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has peekedperfect
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am peekingprogressive
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are peekingprogressive
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is peekingprogressive
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have been peekingperfect progressive
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has been peekingperfect progressive
Past
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peekedsimple
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had peekedperfect
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was peekingprogressive
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were peekingprogressive
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had been peekingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of peek
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English piken (verb); perhaps dissimilated variant of kiken “to look furtively, keek”; see keek
Explanation
When you peek, you take a quick glance at something. It's incredibly tempting when you're little to peek at your birthday presents, but you soon learn how disappointing it is to spoil the surprise. A sneaky look at something is a peek. You might peek at someone if you're shy or you don't want them to catch you looking. You can also describe a glance at a part of something as "a peek" — like when you take a peek at a napping child. Peek comes from piken, a 14th century word meaning "look quickly and slyly." Until the 15th century, the word peek was used interchangeably with keek and peep.
Vocabulary lists containing peek
Some Tricky Homonyms
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Commonly Confused Words, List 3
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"The War of the Wall" by Toni Cade Bambara
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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.
See Examples For:
Watching “That Thing You Do!” climbing the charts throughout the movie is a peek into an alien musical world, one that was both more regional and more monocultural than the one we inhabit today.
From Salon ● Oct. 4, 2026
Since settling into the home, Biles has offered several glimpses inside the lavish property—including a peek at their luxurious bedroom, which was designed to evoke the feeling of a five-star hotel.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 28, 2026
One peek inside wardrobe stylist and art director Morgan Jordan’s apartment in Glendale, and it’s clear she is not afraid of paint.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026
Investors are still waiting for a peek at the company’s inner financial workings, and the company still has key decisions to make.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026
Visitors were allowed on the Dessoug, & it looked like thousands of people came on to get a peek at the obelisk.
From "The (Mostly) True Story of Cleopatra's Needle" by Dan Gutman
A dull yellow light peeks through a brooding sky looming over rolling Southern California hills.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 26, 2026
A-list stars and directors were on hand to give peeks at what to expect.
From BBC ● Apr. 17, 2026
Jareth peeks at her from between the masked dancers whirling around her, hiding and seeking, smiling gently, for once, as “As the World Falls Down” lilts behind the action.
From Salon ● Jan. 24, 2026
Mui knocks on the door, and a man peeks through the curtains from a window on the ground floor.
From Slate ● Oct. 27, 2025
But once the door is closed, she opens it and peeks out.
From "The Tenth Mistake of Hank Hooperman" by Gennifer Choldenko
Donchatz and her sister peeked into the cabin, pausing at the many original family treasures on display.
From Barron's ● Aug. 26, 2026
"I peeked up at the screen, saw I had a bit of a gap, and I felt great," added the Edinburgh athlete, who has been racing at Scotstoun since he was a child.
From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026
Employees peeked through a wrought-iron gate as former Noma head of fermentation Jason Ignacio White read a letter decrying Redzepi.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 13, 2026
The truck lumbered through the forest in the setting sun, stopping at a grove of bigcone Douglas-fir trees, where West and a colleague unloaded the cage, lifted the door and waited as Orange peeked outside.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 17, 2025
She peeked between the wooden slats at the scene they were leaving behind.
From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood
They do not want their followers peeking behind door number three.
From Salon ● Sep. 21, 2026
It is a Campbell’s-inspired soup can, lightly angled so strands of broccoli are peeking out.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2026
Soon after the start of the Civil War, Church turned the atmospheric effects of a rising sun, striated clouds, and stars peeking through a patch of sky into a tattered Union flag.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 20, 2026
Because I knew to look for it, I saw the faint surgical scar peeking above the neckline of the child’s dress.
From Slate ● Mar. 29, 2026
“Dari’s being weird,” she said, peeking outside as she held the egg out, ready to drop it.
From "The Science of Breakable Things" by Tae Keller
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.
