squint

1 of 3

adjective

ˈskwint 

1

of an eye : looking or tending to look obliquely or askance (as with envy or disdain)

2

of the eyes : not having the visual axes parallel : crossed

squint

2 of 3

verb

squinted; squinting; squints

intransitive verb

1

a

: to have an indirect bearing, reference, or aim

b

: to deviate from a true line

2

a

: to look in a squint-eyed manner

b

: to be cross-eyed

c

: to look or peer with eyes partly closed

transitive verb

: to cause (an eye) to squint

squinter noun

squintingly

ˈskwin-tiŋ-lē 

adverb

squint

3 of 3

noun

1

: strabismus

2

: an instance of squinting

3

: hagioscope

squinty

ˈskwin-tē 

adjective

Examples of squint in a Sentence

Verb

She had to squint to read the small print.

He squinted through the haze of smoke.

I had to squint my eyes to focus on the tiny letters.

I noticed that he squints.

Noun

Her gaze narrowed into a squint.

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Dana Carvey’s Joe Biden dropped by, too, to squint and ramble before Harris shooed him off stage. —Dave Nemetz, TVLine, 2 Nov. 2024

But some of those allusions to unproductive mornings and squinting unpreparedness belie an unease with the endeavor of book reviewing itself. —Sloane Crosley, The New Yorker, 1 Nov. 2024

Noun

Their faces spoke louder: frowns of frustration, gasps of shock, squints of doubt, bursts of laughter, pouts of disappointment. —Gerui Wang, Forbes, 2 Nov. 2024

Alexis flips through the emojis one after the next, screen after screen of tiny images making her squint, giving her something like a cramp just between the eyes. —Brian Moylan, Vulture, 10 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

probably aphetic form of earlier a squint, going back to Middle English a squynt, in the phrase beholden (loken) a squynt "to be cross-eyed, look obliquely," from a- a- entry 1 + squynt, of uncertain origin

Note: Middle English a squynt, asquint has been compared with Dutch schuin "aslant, slantingly, askew" (unknown in Middle Dutch, first attested as schuyn "transversus, obliquus" in the Dutch-Latin dictionary of Cornelis Kiliaan, 1599), though the nature of the relationship is unclear. (Dutch schuin is paralleled by Gronings [West Low German] schuun, Low German schün, hypothetically from Germanic *skeuni-.) The form asquint is attested early, already in the Ancrene Wisse (as an addition in one manuscript, British Library Cotton Nero A.14, mid-13th century), but if a putative early Middle Dutch [sχy:n], prior to the development of the diphthong, is the source, -squint seems an unlikely outcome. Variants without t (of skwyn "on a slant," askoyn, ascoign "askance") may have a more direct relationship to Dutch schuin.

Verb

derivative of squint entry 1

Noun

derivative of squint entry 2

First Known Use

Adjective

1579, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1599, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1a

Noun

circa 1652, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing squint

• squint-eyed

Kids Definition

squint

1 of 2 verb

ˈskwint 

1

a

: to look with a side glance (as in jealousy or disdain)

b

: to be cross-eyed

2

: to look or peer with eyes partly closed

squinter noun

squint

2 of 2 noun

1

: inability to direct both eyes to the same object due to a fault of the muscles of the eyeball

2

: the act or an instance of squinting

squinty

ˈskwint-ē

adjective

Medical Definition

squint

1 of 2 intransitive verb

ˈskwint 

1

: to be cross-eyed

2

: to look or peer with eyes partly closed

squint

2 of 2 noun

1

: strabismus

2

: an instance or habit of squinting