Peek

from WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006)

peek
    n 1: a secret look [syn: {peek}, {peep}]
    v 1: throw a glance at; take a brief look at; "She only glanced
         at the paper"; "I only peeked--I didn't see anything
         interesting" [syn: {glance}, {peek}, {glint}]

from The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

Peek \Peek\ (p[=e]k), v. i. [OE. piken: cf. F. piquer to pierce,
   prick, E. pique. Cf. {Peak}.]
   To look surreptitiously, or with the eyes half closed, or
   through a crevice; to peep. [Colloq.]
   [1913 Webster]

from Jargon File (4.4.4, 14 Aug 2003)

peek
 n.,vt.

   (and {poke}) The commands in most microcomputer BASICs for directly
   accessing memory contents at an absolute address; often extended to
   mean the corresponding constructs in any {HLL} (peek reads memory,
   poke modifies it). Much hacking on small, non-MMU micros used to
   consist of peeking around memory, more or less at random, to find the
   location where the system keeps interesting stuff. Long (and variably
   accurate) lists of such addresses for various computers circulated.
   The results of pokes at these addresses may be highly useful, mildly
   amusing, useless but neat, or (most likely) total {lossage} (see
   {killer poke}).

   Since a {real operating system} provides useful, higher-level services
   for the tasks commonly performed with peeks and pokes on micros, and
   real languages tend not to encourage low-level memory groveling, a
   question like "How do I do a peek in C?" is diagnostic of the
   {newbie}. (Of course, OS kernels often have to do exactly this; a real
   kernel hacker would unhesitatingly, if unportably, assign an absolute
   address to a pointer variable and indirect through it.)

from The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (8 July 2008)

PEEK

   The command in most {microcomputer} {BASICs} for reading
   memory contents (a byte) at an absolute address.  POKE is the
   corresponding command to write a value to an absolute address.

   This is often extended to mean the corresponding constructs in
   any {High Level Language}.

   Much hacking on small {microcomputers} without {MMUs} consists
   of "peek"ing around memory, more or less at random, to find
   the location where the system keeps interesting stuff.  Long
   (and variably accurate) lists of such addresses for various
   computers circulate (see {interrupt list}).  The results of
   "poke"s at these addresses may be highly useful, mildly
   amusing, useless but neat, or total {lossage} (see {killer
   poke}).

   Since a {real operating system} provides useful, higher-level
   services for the tasks commonly performed with peeks and pokes
   on micros, and real languages tend not to encourage low-level
   memory groveling, a question like "How do I do a peek in C?"
   is diagnostic of the {newbie}.  Of course, {operating system}
   {kernels} often have to do exactly this; a real {C} hacker
   would unhesitatingly, if unportably, assign an absolute
   address to a pointer variable and indirect through it.

   [{Jargon File}]

   (1995-01-31)

from V.E.R.A. -- Virtual Entity of Relevant Acronyms (June 2006)

PEEK
       Partners Early Experience Kit (Taligent)

from Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

24 Moby Thesaurus words for "peek":
      bend the eyes, blink, cast, direct the eyes, flash, gander, glance,
      glimpse, half an eye, look, meddle, nose, peep, peer,
      play peekaboo, pry, quick sight, rapid glance, slant, snoop, spy,
      squiz, take a peep, wink