Meaning & use
periscope
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountable
A tube with mirrors or prisms that lets you see things above or around an obstacle, used especially in submarines.
Grammar: Countable: you can say 'a periscope' or 'periscopes'.
Patterns
- look through a periscope
- raise/lower the periscope
- see something through a periscope
The submarine captain raised the periscope to check for ships on the surface.
From the trench, the soldier used a periscope to observe the enemy without exposing himself.
The periscope allows the crew to see above the water while staying submerged.
nouncountablemilitary
A similar device on a tank or armored vehicle that lets the crew see outside while staying protected.
Grammar: Countable; often used in the plural when talking about a vehicle's set of viewing devices.
Patterns
- tank periscope
- periscope on a tank
The tank commander scanned the field through the periscope.
Modern armored vehicles have several periscopes for the driver and commander.
Word forms
| plural | periscopes |
|---|
Common combinations
- raise the periscope
- The captain ordered the crew to raise the periscope.
- look through a periscope
- She looked through the periscope and saw nothing but open sea.
- submarine periscope
- The submarine periscope was damaged in the storm.
- periscope depth
- The submarine sailed at periscope depth to stay hidden.
Word family
- periscopic adjective
- Relating to a periscope or having a view around obstacles.
Commonly confused: periscope or telescope? periscope or kaleidoscope?
periscope vs telescope
A telescope makes distant objects look bigger, while a periscope lets you see over or around something nearby.
periscope vs kaleidoscope
A kaleidoscope shows changing colorful patterns, not a view of the outside world.
Practice
The submarine captain ordered the crew to _____ the periscope so he could see the surface.
Choose one answer.
'Raise' is correct because it takes an object (the periscope). 'Rise' is intransitive and cannot take an object; 'arise' means 'happen' and is not used for physical lifting; 'lift up' is possible but less natural in this nautical context.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “periscope”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.