periscope

See also: Periscope and périscope

English

Naval officer using a periscope

Etymology

From peri- +‎ -scope.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈpɛɹɪskəʊp/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

Noun

periscope (plural periscopes)

1. A form of viewing device that allows the viewer to see things at a different height level and usually with minimal visibility.
   • 1918 September–November, Edgar Rice Burroughs, “The Land That Time Forgot”, in The Blue Book Magazine, Chicago, Ill.: Story-press Corp., →OCLC; republished as chapter IV, in Hugo Gernsback, editor, Amazing Stories, (please specify |part=I to III), New York, N.Y.: Experimenter Publishing, 1927, →OCLC:

     The waters grew suddenly lighter, and my spirits rose accordingly. I shouted down to those below that I saw daylight ahead, and a great shout of thanksgiving reverberated through the ship. A moment later we emerged into sunlit water, and immediately I raised the periscope and looked about me upon the strangest landscape I had ever seen.

2. (obsolete) A general or comprehensive view.
   • 1885, Transactions of the Michigan State Medical Society‎^[1], page 55:

     […] will show it not only enlarging the periscope of knowledge, but contributing to the amelioration of the condition of unfortunate and suffering humanity […]

Related terms

• periscopic
• periscopically

Translations

viewing device

• Catalan: periscopi (ca) m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 潛望鏡／潜望镜 (zh) (qiánwàngjìng)

• Czech: periskop (cs) m
• Danish: periskop n
• Dutch: periscoop (nl)
• Esperanto: periskopo
• Finnish: periskooppi (fi)
• French: périscope (fr) m
• Galician: periscopio (gl) m
• German: Periskop (de) n
• Greek: περισκόπιο (el) n (periskópio)
• Ido: periskopo (io)
• Italian: periscopio (it) m
• Japanese: 潜望鏡 (ja) (せんぼうきょう, senbōkyō)
• Korean: 잠망경 (ko) (jammanggyeong)
• Malay: teropong corong, teropong hendap, teropong intip, periskop
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: periskop n

  Nynorsk: periskop n

• Portuguese: periscópio (pt) m
• Russian: периско́п (ru) m (periskóp)
• Spanish: periscopio (es) m
• Swedish: periskop (sv) n

Verb

periscope (third-person singular simple present periscopes, present participle periscoping, simple past and past participle periscoped)

1. (intransitive) To rise and peer around, in the manner of a periscope.
   • 1951, National Geographic Magazine: Volume 99:

     Thousands of ungainly black-beaked heads would periscope and freeze in the direction of the approaching intruder.

   • 1987, Field & Stream March 1987:

     The second summer I had a great deal of interest but weeks passed before I worked up the nerve to approach her, the confidence finally gained when I caught a queen snake that periscoped within reach, one of the last I ever saw swimming in Cross Creek.

   • 2008, Doug Stamm, The Springs of Florida, page 99:

     Areas of barren sand are likely spots to look for its [the turtle's] periscoping head. Its fondness for the bottom is equally matched by its ability to quickly disappear and tunnel into it.

   • 2010, Jim Moran, The Sentinel: A Wildfire Story, page 236:

     Her black and white head suddenly popped out from under the covers and periscoped around.

Anagrams

• pericopes