descry
oxford
views updated Jun 27 2018descry A. †proclaim, declare; †disclose; †cry down, decry XIV;
B. catch sight of, discern XIV. — OF.
descrier cry, publish,
DECRY. Sense
B appears to have arisen through identification with †
descrie (- OF.
descrire)
DESCRIBE, which combined the senses of ‘write down’ and ‘mark down, discern’.
The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology T. F. HOAD
descry
oxford
views updated May 23 2018de·scry / diˈskrī/ •
v. (-scries, -scried) [tr.] poetic/lit. catch sight of: she descried two figures.
The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English
