Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

look daggers

/ˌlʊk ˈdæɡɚz/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.02 in modern English

Syllables: look dag-gers
IPA: /ˌlʊk ˈdæɡɚz/

18

Scrabble Score

11

Letters

2

Syllables

9

Unique Chars

Meaning

verb

Often followed by at: to stare in a disapproving, severe, or threatening manner, especially without speaking.

Intransitive verb

Example Sentences

"Before him set the grim baron, with a face worthy of the father of such a daughter, and looking daggers and rat's bane."
"Both employers looked daggers at Kit, for the insult rankled; […]"
"Even before a waitress came up, two hostesses approached and looked daggers at Suzy and Teresa, both of whom glared back."

Etymology

An allusion to a look being so fierce as to be able to injure the person looked at like a dagger.

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ˌlʊk ˈdæɡɚz/
British English: /ˌlʊk ˈdæɡəz/

Usage

Intransitive verb

Inflected Forms

looks daggers (present, singular) looking daggers (participle, present) looked daggers (participle, past) looked daggers (past)

Phrases

dirty look evil eye if looks could kill

Frequently Paired Words

dirty look evil eye if looks could kill

Synonyms

glare daggers shoot daggers stare daggers

Questions

How do you pronounce look daggers?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˌlʊk ˈdæɡɚz/.
What does look daggers mean?: Often followed by at: to stare in a disapproving, severe, or threatening manner, especially without speaking.
Where does look daggers come from?: An allusion to a look being so fierce as to be able to injure the person looked at like a dagger.

How to pronounce look daggers

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “look daggers”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˌlʊk ˈdæɡɚz/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “look daggers”.
Repeat and practice — Say “look daggers” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.