gazed; gazing; gazes
: to fix the eyes in a steady intent look often with eagerness or studious attention
gazed out the window at the snow
gazer
noun
plural gazers
plural gazes
1
: a fixed intent look
a steady gaze
He fixed his gaze out the window.
She lowered/dropped/raised her gaze.
I met his gaze. [=I looked back at him.]
2
: the collective preferences and expectations of a usually privileged social group especially when imposed as a standard or norm on other groups
In 1973, British feminist film writer Laura Mulvey wrote a seminal essay called "Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema", which explored how mainstream films appealed to a male gaze—a term she coined—because the industry was dominated by men who, inevitably, constructed representations of women from a masculine point of view.—
Kerrie O'Brien
Kerrie O'BrienSo few slots are available for nonwhite writers that those who break through are sometimes themselves charged with … exaggerating elements of their culture for a white gaze; living up to the image that white writers have created for them, the easier to be packaged and sold.—Ligaya Mishan
Ligaya MishanIt looks like a gentle scene of a seaside vacation. But this painting by Berthe Morisot, perhaps the most underrated Impressionist, is a layered vision of a dawning modern age and a rare glimpse at the 19th-century female gaze.—Natasha Frost
Natasha FrostSynonyms
Examples of gaze in a Sentence
Verb
He gazed out the window at the snow.
She gazed intently into his eyes.
Noun
She looked at him with a calm, steady gaze.
suddenly aware of her admiring gaze, he became self-conscious and uncomfortable
Recent Examples on the Web
Oskar Oprey, Artforum, 28 Jan. 2025
What happens when the interior gazes at its own exterior and paints it, like a chair?
—Karl Ove Knausgaard, The New Yorker, 27 Jan. 2025
Mara Hoberman, Artforum, 1 Feb. 2025
So why not extend our gaze across the culture as well?
—Taylor Antrim, Vogue, 31 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for gaze 
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Verb
In the center of the Gallery, the songbooks that were used in the recording process dangled down on chains from a huge chandelier; we weren’t allowed to touch them, just gaze in wonder—if so inclined.
—Oskar Oprey, Artforum, 28 Jan. 2025
What happens when the interior gazes at its own exterior and paints it, like a chair?
—Karl Ove Knausgaard, The New Yorker, 27 Jan. 2025
Noun
Acknowledging that her brackets can only cover so much terrain, the artist directs our gaze beyond the artwork and back to life.
—Mara Hoberman, Artforum, 1 Feb. 2025
So why not extend our gaze across the culture as well?
—Taylor Antrim, Vogue, 31 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for gaze
Dictionary Entries Near gaze
Cite this Entry
“Gaze.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gaze. Accessed 7 Feb. 2025.
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