Perspicere

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To look closely or inspect carefully; to perceive or understand clearly and insightfully; to discern or detect something hidden or not immediately obvious
2. To observe attentively or study with precision; to grasp or comprehend with keen insight; to recognize or identify subtle details or truths
3. To examine or survey with focused attention; to apprehend or realize through clear mental vision; to distinguish or uncover information not readily apparent

Etymology: "Perspicere" is the Latin verb from which English "perspicacious" and "perspicuous" descend, and its core sense is literal: "per" ("through") plus "specere" ("to look"), so to look through something. Roman writers used it for seeing clearly through a barrier or into a space, and the figurative sense of seeing through appearances to the truth developed from there. Because the verb was a compound of the common "specere" family, it shares its root with "spectacle," "inspect," and "suspicion," all of which keep the idea of looking at something closely. The "per-" prefix is what gives the verb its sense of penetrating, as opposed to merely glancing at a surface.

Synonyms: see through, perceive, discern, observe, understand

Antonyms: ignore, overlook, miss, neglect