perspective

English

Illustration of the use of perspective to create the perception of depth in a two-dimensional projection.

Etymology

From Middle English perspective, perspectif, attested since 1381, from Old French or Middle French, from the first word of the Medieval Latin perspectiva ars (“science of optics”), the feminine of Latin perspectivus (“of sight, optical”), from perspectus, the past participle of perspicere (“to inspect, look through”), itself from per- (“through”) + specere (“to look at”); the noun sense was influenced or mediated by Italian prospettiva, from prospetto (“prospect”).

Pronunciation

• (General American) IPA^(key): /pɚˈspɛk.tɪv/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Noun

perspective (countable and uncountable, plural perspectives)

1. A view, vista or outlook.
2. The appearance of depth in objects, especially as perceived using binocular vision.
3. The technique of representing three-dimensional objects on a two-dimensional surface.
4. (dated) An artwork that represents three-dimensional objects in this way.
5. (figuratively) The choice of a single angle or point of view from which to sense, categorize, measure or codify experience.
6. The ability to consider things in such relative perspective.
7. A perspective glass.
   • 1645, Joseph Hall, The Peace-Maker:

     […] our predecessors; who could never have believed, that there were such lunets about some of the planets, as our late perspectives have descried […]

8. A sound recording technique to adjust and integrate sound sources seemingly naturally.

Hyponyms

• linear perspective
• metaperspective
• microperspective

Derived terms

• perspectival
• perspectivism
• point-projection perspective
• side-perspective
• twisted perspective

Related terms

• atmospheric perspective
• forced perspective
• in perspective
• isometric perspective
• perspicacious
• perspicacity
• perspicuity
• perspicuous
• perspicuously
• put something into perspective
• two-point perspective

 

Translations

view, vista or outlook

• Arabic: مَنْظُور m (manẓūr)
• Armenian: հեռանկար (hy) (heṙankar)
• Belarusian: пэрспэкты́ва f (perspektýva), вы́гляд (be) m (výhljad)
• Bulgarian: перспекти́ва (bg) f (perspektíva)
• Catalan: perspectiva (ca) f
• Danish: udsigt c, perspektiv n
• Dutch: perspectief (nl) n
• Esperanto: sinteno
• Finnish: näkymä (fi)
• Galician: perspectiva (gl) f
• German: Aussicht (de) f
• Hindi: दृष्टिकोण (hi) m (dŕṣṭikoṇ), परिप्रेक्ष्य (hi) m (pariprekṣya)
• Indonesian: perspektif (id)
• Italian: prospettiva (it) f
• Polish: punkt widzenia (pl) m, perspektywa (pl) f
• Portuguese: perspectiva (pt) f (Brazil), perspetiva f (Portugal)
• Russian: перспекти́ва (ru) f (perspektíva), вид (ru) m (vid), обзо́р (ru) m (obzór), ра́курс (ru) m (rákurs)
• Spanish: perspectiva (es) f
• Turkish: perspektif (tr)
• Ukrainian: перспекти́ва (perspektýva), огля́д (uk) (ohljád), ра́курс (rákurs)

appearance of depth in objects

• Asturian: perspeutiva f
• Bulgarian: перспекти́ва (bg) f (perspektíva)
• Catalan: perspectiva (ca) f
• Dutch: perspectief (nl) n, dieptezicht
• Finnish: perspektiivi (fi), syvyysvaikutelma (fi)
• Galician: perspectiva (gl) f
• German: Perspektive (de) f
• Greek: προοπτική (el) f (prooptikí)
• Hindi: परिप्रेक्ष्य (hi) m (pariprekṣya)
• Italian: prospettiva (it)
• Portuguese: perspectiva (pt) f (Brazil), perspetiva f (Portugal)
• Russian: перспекти́ва (ru) f (perspektíva)
• Spanish: perspectiva (es) f
• Ukrainian: перспекти́ва (perspektýva)

technique of representing three-dimensional objects on a two-dimensional surface

• Asturian: perspeutiva f
• Bulgarian: проекция f (proekcija)
• Catalan: perspectiva (ca) f
• Czech: perspektiva f
• Dutch: perspectief (nl) n, doorzichtkunde (nl)
• Finnish: perspektiivikuva, projektio (fi)
• Galician: perspectiva (gl) f
• German: Perspektive (de) f
• Greek: προοπτική (el) f (prooptikí)
• Indonesian: perspektif (id)
• Italian: prospettiva (it)
• Portuguese: perspectiva (pt) f (Brazil), perspetiva f (Portugal)
• Russian: перспекти́ва (ru) f (perspektíva), прое́кция (ru) f (projékcija)
• Slovak: perspektíva f
• Spanish: perspectiva (es) f
• Tagalog: sawang
• Thai: ทัศนมิติ
• Ukrainian: перспекти́ва (perspektýva), прое́кція (proékcija)

choice of a single point of view

• Armenian: դիտանկյուն (hy) (ditankyun)
• Bulgarian: перспекти́ва (bg) f (perspektíva)
• Dutch: perspectief (nl) n
• Finnish: näkökulma (fi)
• Galician: perspectiva (gl) f
• German: Perspektive (de) f
• Italian: prospettiva (it)
• Portuguese: perspectiva (pt) f (Brazil), perspetiva f (Portugal)
• Russian: перспекти́ва (ru) f (perspektíva)
• Thai: มุมมอง (mum-mɔɔng)
• Ukrainian: перспекти́ва (perspektýva)

ability to consider things in such relative perspective

perspective glass — see perspective glass

sound recording technique

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• French: ^{(please verify)} perspective (fr) f
• Spanish: ^{(please verify)} perspectiva (es) f

Adjective

perspective (not comparable)

1. Of, in or relating to perspective.

   a perspective drawing

2. (obsolete) Providing visual aid; of or relating to the science of vision; optical.
   • 1625, Francis [Bacon], “Of Seeming Wise”, in The Essayes […], 3rd edition, London: […] Iohn Haviland for Hanna Barret, →OCLC:

     perspective glasses

Translations

of, in or relating to perspective

• Bulgarian: перспекти́вен (perspektíven)
• Danish: perspektivisk
• Dutch: perspectivisch (nl)
• French: perspectif (fr)
• Greek: προοπτικός (el) (prooptikós)
• Portuguese: perspectivo, perspéctico

See also

• omnispective

Further reading

• Perspective (graphical) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• 3D_projection on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

French

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Latin perspectīvus, from perspiciō

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pɛʁ.spɛk.tiv/

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

perspective f (plural perspectives)

1. perspective
2. prospect

   Elle était très effrayée par la perspective de perdre son emploi.

   She was frightened at the prospect of losing her job.

Derived terms

• en perspective

Descendants

• → Danish: perspektiv
• → Norwegian Bokmål: perspektiv
• → Norwegian Nynorsk: perspektiv
• → Swedish: perspektiv
• → Turkish: perspektif

Adjective

perspective

1. feminine singular of perspectif

Further reading

• “perspective”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Portuguese

Verb

perspective

1. inflection of perspectivar:
   1. first/third-person singular present subjunctive
   2. third-person singular imperative