perspective

[ per-spek-tiv ]

/ pərˈspɛk tɪv /

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See synonyms for: perspective / perspectives on Thesaurus.com

noun

a technique of depicting volumes and spatial relationships on a flat surface.Compare aerial perspective, linear perspective.

a picture employing this technique, especially one in which it is prominent: an architect's perspective of a house.

a visible scene, especially one extending to a distance; vista: a perspective on the main axis of an estate.

the state of existing in space before the eye: The elevations look all right, but the building's composition is a failure in perspective.

the state of one's ideas, the facts known to one, etc., in having a meaningful interrelationship: You have to live here a few years to see local conditions in perspective.

the faculty of seeing all the relevant data in a meaningful relationship: Your data is admirably detailed but it lacks perspective.

a mental view or prospect: the dismal perspective of terminally ill patients.

adjective

of or relating to the art of perspective, or represented according to its laws.

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Origin of perspective

1350–1400; Middle English <Medieval Latin perspectīva (ars) optical (science), perspectīvum optical glass, noun uses of feminine and neuter of perspectīvus optical, equivalent to Latin perspect-, past participle stem of perspicere to look at closely (see per-, inspect) + -īvus-ive

OTHER WORDS FROM perspective

per·spec·tiv·al, adjectiveper·spec·tived, adjectiveper·spec·tive·less, adjectiveper·spec·tive·ly, adverb

non·per·spec·tive, noun, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH perspective

perspective , prospective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use perspective in a sentence

This difference in perspectives is really starting to bother me, since our children are at an age where everything we say counts.
Carolyn Hax: She has a 90-minute commute, but it doesn’t have to be all uphill|Carolyn Hax|November 12, 2020|Washington Post
If that background has lent him one perspective in his current job, he has said, it’s that facts and figures matter.
His fellow Republicans turned on him, but Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger isn’t backing down|Reis Thebault, Amy Gardner|November 12, 2020|Washington Post
This should remove the “creepy” noise from the marketing system from a user perspective.
Concrete steps marketers should take now to get ready for CA’s CPRA in 2023|Greg Sterling|November 11, 2020|Search Engine Land
Oftentimes, when we visualize the perfect buyer’s journey, we’re looking at it from a marketer’s perspective, imagining what we’re trying to achieve with our initiatives.
Building connections between siloed channels, technologies and teams|Sponsored Content: Integrate|November 11, 2020|Search Engine Land

Then when I found out that I was having a girl, my whole perspective on my career and my life completely changed.
Michelle Wie West on her golf comeback plan: I want my daughter to see me play|ehinchliffe|November 10, 2020|Fortune
Horizontals in the same plane which are drawn to the same point on the horizon are perspectively parallel to each other.
The Theory and Practice of Perspective|George Adolphus Storey
This motion, granting it to exist, would be manifested perspectively.
Eureka:|Edgar A. Poe
When you see it bent back you see it perspectively distorted.
Popular scientific lectures|Ernst Mach
The intermediate picture, as it may be called—the human artist's work—is itself seen perspectively.
A Budget of Paradoxes, Volume I (of II)|Augustus De Morgan
You have often heard, and know from personal experience, that remote objects appear perspectively dwarfed.
Popular scientific lectures|Ernst Mach

British Dictionary definitions for perspective

perspective

/ (pəˈspɛktɪv) /

noun

a way of regarding situations, facts, etc, and judging their relative importance

the proper or accurate point of view or the ability to see it; objectivitytry to get some perspective on your troubles

the theory or art of suggesting three dimensions on a two-dimensional surface, in order to recreate the appearance and spatial relationships that objects or a scene in recession present to the eye

the appearance of objects, buildings, etc, relative to each other, as determined by their distance from the viewer, or the effects of this distance on their appearance

a view over some distance in space or time; vista; prospect

a picture showing perspective

Derived forms of perspective

perspectively, adverb

Word Origin for perspective

C14: from Medieval Latin perspectīva ars the science of optics, from Latin perspicere to inspect carefully, from per- (intensive) + specere to behold

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for perspective

perspective

In drawing or painting, a way of portraying three dimensions on a flat, two-dimensional surface by suggesting depth or distance.

perspective

Origin of perspective

OTHER WORDS FROM perspective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH perspective

Words related to perspective

How to use perspective in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for perspective

Derived forms of perspective

Word Origin for perspective

Cultural definitions for perspective