Meaning
- To examine or review carefully.
- To search for something inside a collection.
- To ignore someone intentionally.
Today's Sentences
- I spent the weekend looking through old photographs.
- Did you look through that drawer near the desk?
- Writer's Note
01
I spent the weekend looking through old photographs.
Situation
What did you do over the weekend?
I spent the weekend looking through old photographs.
Are you missing family?
I think I wanted to go back in time for a moment.
02
Did you look through that drawer near the desk?
Situation
Have you seen my passport anywhere?
Not sure.
Did you look through that drawer near the desk?
No, I haven’t checked there yet.
I’ll do that now.
I think that’s where you usually leave it.
Writer's Note
"Look through" is an intransitive and inseparable phrasal verb.
- Intransitive - It requires a direct object—you always "look through" something such as a document, list, drawer, or person (metaphorically).
Example 1: I looked through the report and found nothing noteworthy.
Example 2: They’re looking through their notes before the presentation.
Example 3: He looked through the magazine while waiting at the salon. - Inseparable - You cannot place the object between "look" and "through".
Example 1: They looked through the antique collection at the flea market.
Example 2: She looked through the collection of books at the new bookstore.
Example 3: Both parties looked through the contract for the transfer of ownership of the property.
Related words: Browse, comb through, dig through, examine, flip through, glance through, inspect, peruse, pore over, rifle through, scan, scour, skim, rifle through, thumb through.
